The Mech Code
by metallicgirl42
Summary: Turbulence arises when Skywarp meets his spark-mate, Moonbeam. Thundercracker secretly lusts after her too, which causes constant fights and eventually a cold rift between him and Skywarp. Meanwhile, Starscream, caught in the middle, suspects that Moonbeam will break Skywarp's spark-and that he might be losing his best friends. Please read, review, and enjoy! :) COMPLETE
1. The Medic Will See You Now

**This story kind of builds on my recent mini fanfic, **_**Unstable Energon**_**. Starscream is recovering from a serious injury involving an exploding energon cube, so Skywarp has called in a Seeker medic he met who specializes in doctoring other jets—and in seducing unsuspecting mechs. Her name is Moonbeam, and Skywarp falls for her almost immediately. What he doesn't know is that Thundercracker is secretly out of his mind with jealousy and wants Moonbeam for his own, inducing constant fights between the two of them. Starscream, who ends up caught helplessly in the middle of this terrifying web of drama, suspects that Moonbeam is not as good a femme as she seems—and, worst of all, that he is losing his two best friends. Is a beautiful femme all it takes to split up the famous three jets? (Rated "M" for certain naughty activity.)**

"Oh, I ache," said Starscream miserably, lying down again on the repair table and moaning in pain. "When is the medic going to get here?"

"Don't worry," said Skywarp, tapping his foot. "She'll be here."

"Well, I hope she will be," mumbled Starscream, trying to find a comfortable resting position, but no matter which way he turned, he landed on something that had been injured.

"Slag it, Starscream, will you knock off all that squirming around business?" Thundercracker snapped. "You're driving me crazy."

"Well, excuse ME," Starscream said angrily, lying flat on his back, and let out another howl of pain as his helmet and wings slammed into the hard metal bed. "SKYWARP!"

"_What_?!" said Skywarp.

"WHERE is your little friend?" Starscream demanded. "Come on, I'm dying here!"

"You were dying a few days ago," Megatron reminded him. "Now, you're just recovering."

"Starscream?" they suddenly heard a female voice say. "The medic will see you now."

"Oh, goody," said Skywarp, and disappeared. When he decided to teleport back into the med bay, he wasn't alone.

She was a femme Seeker, mostly black, but with shining golden wings, forearms, and feet. She was rather small, only up to Skywarp's shoulder, but she was well put together and pretty. She wasn't smiling, exactly, but she had a hint of a smirk on her face—the kind of look that says, _I_'_m sexy and I know it_. In one hand was a box full of medical supplies. Starscream hoped this wouldn't be too painful.

"Everyone," said Skywarp, putting his arm around her, "meet Moonbeam."

"Nice to meet you, everybody," Moonbeam said in a flirty voice, waving at them all.

"Thank Primus you're here!" Starscream sighed with relief. "I hope you can help me. As you can see, I'm very injured."

"Well, I just happen to specialize in that, sir." Moonbeam approached the repair table and set down her box of medical supplies. When she opened it, Starscream looked more than a little nervous.

"What's that?!" he asked, feeling panicked as he watched her pull out a large needle and a little jar of medicine. "Will it hurt?"

"This is just the anesthesia, silly," laughed Moonbeam, lifting up the needle, as Starscream's facial expression turned to terror.

"Do you want to squeeze my hand?" asked Skywarp. Starscream nodded and quickly snatched the purple jet's hand.

Moonbeam smiled sweetly. "Now, this may pinch a little…"

"OW!" Starscream shrieked as she jabbed the needle into one of his wings. "I thought you told me that was the anesthesia!"

"It is," said Moonbeam. "It just takes a few moments to sink in, that's all."

Starscream winced. "It takes a few—ohhh…"

"What happened?" asked Skywarp, letting go of Starscream's hand.

"His pain's going away," she replied. "I haven't seen someone this injured in a long time, so I gave him quite a bit of that stuff. It's meant to keep his sensor nodes from detecting the pain. In fact, he might be a bit…loopy for a few hours after this."

"Loopy like how?" asked Megatron, looking at Starscream, who was slowly settling back into the covers like a sparkling at bedtime.

"Well, he might act kind of funny after it reaches his CPU," said Moonbeam. "And he won't remember the procedure...or who any of you are, necessarily. Oh, and don't let him out to fly for at least another four hours."

"Medic?" called Starscream, waving his hand all around in the air. Now he had a rather relaxed, peaceful smile on his face.

"Oh, yes, of course," said Moonbeam. "Don't worry, this will be over soon."

The medical procedure lasted about an hour, during which Moonbeam helped Starscream recover from all his battle wounds a few days ago. Just as she predicted, Starscream wasn't really acting like himself; he just lay there in the bed, smiling tranquilly. Whenever anyone tried to talk to him he just mumbled something unintelligible back and laughed a little woozily.

When Moonbeam was finally finished with her stitches, bandages, and other doctoring in general, she put all her tools away and patted Starscream's helmet.

"Now, just relax and let everything heal," she told him, standing up. "You'll be feeling better before you know it."

"Who are you?" said Starscream, then blacked out.

**ONE HOUR LATER…**

Starscream woke up from stasis. Megatron and Thundercracker were still there, but Skywarp and Moonbeam were gone.

"Megatron!" called Starscream drowsily, waving. "Hey, what's up, buddy?"

"I see you are awake, Starscream," said Megatron coolly.

"Man, did you see that medic, Screamer?!" Thundercracker shouted. "Dear Primus, was she _smokin_'!"

"Smoke?" said Starscream, sounding confused. "Is something burning?"

"Get Soundwave in here, Thundercracker." Megatron smirked. "I have _got _to record this."

Thundercracker nodded and left to get Soundwave. Starscream yawned and asked, "Hey, where…where is everybody?"

"Skywarp and that femme left to go grab an energon smoothie," said Megatron. "Thundercracker is finding Soundwave."

"Soundwave?" asked Starscream, waving his hand in the air, obviously struggling to formulate words. "Is he the one with the…with the…the cat?"

"Ravage," said Megatron.

"Nice to meet you, Ravage," Starscream mumbled.

Megatron slapped himself in the forehead then sat down in the chair next to the repair table. "How many fingers am I holding up?"

"I-I, um, ten," said Starscream confidently.

"I'm only holding up one hand!" yelled Megatron.

"One what?" asked Starscream, then lay back again and closed his eyes as Thundercracker and Soundwave walked back in.

"Starscream, what is your most embarrassing secret?" asked Megatron, as Soundwave started to record his reply.

"I think I wondered what…what it would be like to kiss…to kiss a gorilla," mumbled Starscream.

"What's that?" asked Thundercracker.

"It's some Earth creature," said Megatron. "It's basically like a flesh creature, only I think they might be a different species. I don't really remember. Or care."

"Oh," said Thundercracker. "Okay, then, what else shall we ask him?"

"Do you really like Seeker Daily Drama after all, Starscream?" asked Megatron.

"What?" said Starscream. "Oh, yeah, um…good. Good."

"What do you like about it?" Thundercracker grinned.

"The…the 'facing," Starscream told him. "Man…I'm sleepy."

"Okay, that's enough," said Megatron, and Soundwave stopped recording.

"Do you think all those things are true?" asked Thundercracker. "Because, honestly, I can't decide which was the funniest."

"They probably aren't true," replied Megatron. "After all, he's under the influence of some pretty heavy depressants…but he still _said _those things, so who cares?"

"Right." Thundercracker laughed. "He's just gonna be pretty mad when he goes back to normal, though."

"By the way," said Megatron, leaning back in the chair, "did Skywarp happen to say when he was planning to be back?"

"No, of course not." Thundercracker scowled suddenly and turned away. "I suppose they'll be done with their smoothies by three in the morning, maybe."

"And then they'll hit the sheets!" Starscream blurted out. Megatron just laughed, but Thundercracker didn't look quite as happy.

**TO BE CONTINUED…**


	2. Glory of Love

**WARNING: The latter half of this chapter is a tad graphic. Don't say I didn't warn you…!**

Moonbeam was laughing. "Skywarp, why are we walking to the energon smoothie shop? I'm thirsty!"

Skywarp wrapped his hand around Moonbeam's and told her, "We don't have to teleport _everywhere_. What do you suppose I've got legs for?"

What he wanted to do was take a long walk with her and savor the evening. It was just about to get dark, and all the streetlights were glowing. Soon they would reach the smoothie shop, go on their date, and just enjoy each other's company.

When they finally reached the smoothie shop, they stood outside the entrance before going in. Skywarp held one of Moonbeam's hands and caressed her cheek. She looked up at him, her red eyes shining, and they went inside.

"You can get whatever you want," said Skywarp. "I'll pay for it."

"Why thank you," she said, grinning. "Not every mech is so polite."

Skywarp ended up buying two of the same smoothies. Secretly, he didn't approve of them at all (they weren't very healthy) but she was the one who had asked him, after all. How could he say no?

As Moonbeam was drinking her smoothie, Skywarp couldn't help but stare at her from across the table (with hope, not too conspicuously). Finally, he asked, "So, what's it like being a freelance medic?"

"It's nice," Moonbeam replied. "You know, like, I was really happy to help your friend back at base, earlier today."

"So was he," Skywarp told her. "You wouldn't believe what happened to him. It's kind of a long story, but in short, he basically got wrecked because an energon cube exploded right in his face. We're really lucky he lived. And he was in a ton of pain until you helped him."

"Well, I enjoy getting to know you and your friends," said Moonbeam flirtatiously.

"Oh, is that right, my darling?" said Skywarp, lowering his voice a little and placing one hand over hers. "It's nice to get to know you too."

"Thank you!" Moonbeam giggled, slurping up the last of her energon smoothie.

"How was it?" Skywarp asked.

"Oh, it was delicious," she told him. "In fact, if you buy another one, we could get two straws and drink from the same one."

"Very romantic," said Skywarp. "Just stay here and I'll buy us another one."

Skywarp and Moonbeam finished their drink. Skywarp dumped the empty container in the trash can and the two of them walked outside. The night was completely dark, and it had started to rain again.

"I don't quite understand this Earth weather," Moonbeam giggled, and clasped her hands in Skywarp's.

"I'll keep you warm," Skywarp whispered, taking her into his arms. She felt so small, so delicate; he could hardly feel the raindrops landing on his helmet as he slowly slid both hands down to her hips. She snuggled closer and placed her hands on his chestplate. Her eyes were closed.

Skywarp looked down and put one hand beneath her chin, and she looked up at him sweetly as her lips formed a smile. She traced one finger from the tip of his wing all the way down to his shoulder; he felt himself shiver with pleasure as he closed his own eyes and drew her in for a kiss.

It was nothing short of magical for him. She stood up on her toes, wrapped her arms around his neck, and they melted into the kiss, just the two of them, kissing in front of the energon smoothie shop as rain poured down.

Finally, their lips separated, but they still clung to each other, his arms wrapped around her tight, her head resting on his chestplate.

"Hey!" they heard a passerby yell. "Get a room, will you?"

"I can teleport us back to base in two seconds," said Skywarp. Moonbeam nodded, grabbed his hand, and they disappeared into the night.

**BACK AT BASE…**

"Where are we going to stay, Skywarp?" asked Moonbeam, when they were back at base.

"Well, since Starscream doesn't have to stay in the med bay any more, we can go in there," Skywarp suggested, leading her down the hallway towards the med bay.

"I think we might get caught," said Moonbeam.

"You don't have to worry," Skywarp told her. "Megatron is the only one who can override the locks, and he doesn't care what we do."

"What if somebody gets hurt?" asked Moonbeam. "Won't they _need _the med bay?"

"You're the medic, Moonbeam," said Skywarp, slamming the door to the med bay behind him, locking it, and scooping Moonbeam up into his arms, bridal-style. "You tell me."

"Well, okay," she giggled, wrapping her arms around his neck as he carried her to the repair table. "Maybe we need this place more than anyone else right now."

Skywarp sat down on the med bay and pulled Moonbeam up so that she was lying on her front, in between his legs, with his hands on her cheeks, gently turning her head up to look at him. He was very well aware that he'd been continuously pressurizing ever since the kiss outside the smoothie shop, and now she was between his legs, her pretty face staring up right at him.

Moonbeam smiled, looking flirty again. Skywarp pulled her up a little further and they started making out furiously. Skywarp let his hands roam; they started out caressing her wings, to which she mewled with pleasure and collapsed against his chestplate.

"Your body is like a temple," Skywarp whispered, as they separated for a split second.

"Luckily, the services are open tonight," she whispered back, and that was enough. Skywarp felt his interface panel open by itself, and he drew her back into the kiss as they let their hands wander wherever they pleased.

"Oh, baby, you've caught me in heat," Skywarp moaned.

"Do you want me to take care of this for you?" Moonbeam reached her hand down to Skywarp's southern regions and wrapped her fingers around his rock-hard spike.

Skywarp nodded and bit his lip, hoping he wouldn't overload all over her face.

Moonbeam gently spread Skywarp's thighs apart and started giving him his blow job, which seemed to send static electricity all over his body, feeling amazingly good but a little painful at the same time as he tried to hold it in. One small hand reached up and started stroking his wing repeatedly. Skywarp felt Moonbeam was teasing him now, and he liked it, but the stimulation of her handling his wings and sucking his spike at the same time was too much and Moonbeam soon found her face covered in transfluid.

"Oh, um…sorry," said Skywarp, sitting up, his face feeling a little warm.

"Don't worry, it's okay." Moonbeam wiped her face and crawled back into Skywarp's arms, stroking his cockpit as they started to make out again.

Skywarp kissed the top of Moonbeam's helmet as she ran her fingers up and down his inner thighs, this time teasingly avoiding the most sensitive areas. While driving him insane in this manner, she let him explore a bit more, his hands wandering down from her wings to her chest and then her hips, and eventually in between her thighs. With a kind of whimper she spread her legs a little wider, letting him insert his fingers one by one. Hmm…she was pretty lubricated too…Skywarp only hoped she was enjoying this as much as he was (a lot).

Like all the male Seekers, Skywarp was capable of overloading up to three times in one session, as their race tended to be the most fertile—and horny. Before he knew it, he found himself ready for the main event, so to speak.

"Are you ready?" he whispered into her ear. She nodded.

So he picked her up again and swung her around, then pushed himself in. She squealed and placed her feet on his shoulders as he kept going, his lips kissing hers, his hands flat on the metal surface of the repair table.

"I-I'm not even close, hon," Skywarp moaned. Moonbeam only answered with a happy scream; by now the rest of the world was blacked out, and all they could feel was the 'facing. Skywarp felt himself getting hotter and hotter, too fast for his cooling fans to kick in yet, stroking Moonbeam's wings and helmet and hips and kissing her lips and then—

With a feeling he couldn't describe as anything but euphoric, he finally felt the rush of overload inside of her, letting the warm transfluid release itself for several long seconds, until finally he pulled himself out and collapsed next to her, panting, his eyes shut.

Skywarp's cooling fans took a few seconds, but soon he felt himself starting to boot up again. Weakly, he turned his head to look at Moonbeam, who was leaning up on her elbow, a little smirk on her face.

"How was that?" she asked cheekily.

"Perfect, baby," he whispered, turning over and drawing her into his arms. "Just perfect."


	3. Green-Eyed Monster

"I can't wait to _finally _stretch my wings and fly tomorrow." Starscream flexed his wings a little and lay back in his bed. "After all that time being grounded…"

"You weren't even grounded for a month," Thundercracker snapped, and turned towards the wall. "Skywarp is right! You act like a baby."

"Well, _that_'_s _a fine way to talk to your brother," said Starscream. "What's with you, anyway?"

"NOTHING," Thundercracker grunted. "Shut up."

"I mean…I don't remember anything that happened earlier today when that cute femme was fixing me up, but—" Starscream paused, then his red eyes lit up as a grin crossed his face. "Oh, _I _get it. You're jealous, aren't you, Thundercracker?"

"Shut the slag up!" Thundercracker shouted, lobbing his pillow at Starscream. "I'm not jealous in the slightest. I just think he's being really stupid."

"What are you talking about?" asked Starscream, feeling curious as he threw the pillow back to the blue jet.

"Skywarp's now only got one port and valve for the rest of his life cycle," Thundercracker said back. "It's _stupid_."

"You know he's had plenty of 'facing," Starscream reminded him, then shrugged. "We all have."

"Moonbeam is…she's just…" Thundercracker shrugged. "I don't know."

_Skywarp is my brother_, Thundercracker thought to himself. _I could never spike Moonbeam_…_but if only I had seen her first_…

Just the thought of him and Moonbeam all alone in bed, her legs spread for him only, was getting him pressurized all over again. His conscience was telling him he should be ashamed of himself, which he was, but his instinctive horniness was equally hard to ignore.

"Thundercracker?" Starscream whispered. "Why are you being all twitchy like that?"

"For the last time, shut UP!" Thundercracker hollered. "I don't need you poking your nose into my life!"

"You're being crazy, Thundercracker!" Starscream insisted.

"I'm not crazy!" Thundercracker shot back. "If anyone's crazy, you are!"

They were interrupted by Skywarp stumbling into the room, his wings wet with suspicious substances, a dazed smile on his face.

"Looks like somebody got hammered tonight," said Starscream, smirking.

"_Double _overload, tonight." Skywarp moaned happily and fell back onto his bed.

"WHAT?" Thundercracker couldn't stop himself from shouting as he felt a surge of envy flow through his tubes. For a moment he imagined a green monster springing out of his mouth and biting Skywarp's head off; then he took a deep breath and tried to turn himself back to normal again.

"We 'faced and I overloaded twice," Skywarp repeated, lifting his head up a little. "You thought I wasn't capable of that?"

"No, I just think you're being—" Thundercracker paused as he watched Skywarp's eyes glowing innocently in the darkness. Starscream was watching too, his mouth involuntarily open.

"I'm being what?" asked Skywarp.

"You're being really romantic," Thundercracker muttered, sinking down under the covers and closing his eyes. "I-I'm very happy for you."

…

Thundercracker ran his tongue around the inside of Moonbeam's thrusters as her hands stroked his wings. As he felt her moan in pleasure, he stood up and shoved her backwards onto the floor, to which she let out a loud squeal.

"I love you, Moonbeam," he whispered in a husky voice, covering her golden wings in kisses and running his hands up and down her body shamelessly.

"I love you too, Thundercracker," she told him sweetly, rubbing one hand along the side of his face. "In fact, I would die if you didn't spike me right now."

Without saying another word more, Thundercracker spread her legs apart and shoved himself in, grabbing her hands and kissing her lips. It was getting climactic now, when he suddenly felt her fingers sink into the back of his wings, almost like claws.

"Not so rough, my love!" he cried, trying to pull himself out but collapsing on her. Instead of her usual sultry voice, he heard her hissing and felt her scratching him again, this time all the way down his back.

"Ravage: return," Thundercracker finally heard a familiar voice say, and before he knew it he was in his own bed, clutching his pillow tight, soaked in transfluid. When he opened his eyes, he saw that Starscream, Skywarp and Soundwave were all standing next to his bed, staring.

"Are you okay?" asked Skywarp. "You were, like, screaming in your sleep."

"Of course I'm okay," Thundercracker snapped, bolting upright. "Why would you think otherwise?"

"Well, it looks like you need to take a shower," said Starscream, pointing to the messy sheets.

"Operation: release," said Soundwave.

"Yeah, what were you dreaming about, friend?" Starscream laughed.

"Laughter: illogical," Soundwave told them. "Release: necessary."

"Thundercracker: horny," said Skywarp, mimicking Soundwave, and that sent him and Starscream into hysterics.

"You're one to talk, Skywarp," Thundercracker told him, crossing his arms. "And look! Ravage scratched my wings and now they're bleeding!"

"So, go take your shower and head to the med bay." Starscream shrugged as he left the room with Soundwave and Skywarp. "Your self-repair will take care of your scratches."

…

Moonbeam was spread out on the couch luxuriously. Skywarp teleported back into the kitchen, holding a cube of high-grade energon.

"Thank you, baby," she said, taking it from him.

"No problem, sweetheart," he said back, gently hoisting her up and licking her cheek a little. "I love you."

"I love you too," she purred.

"Whatever you need, I will give it to you," he assured her, and cuddled her closer. "All I want is for you to be safe and happy."

"Well, I did see the most beautiful diamond necklace in town, today," she said, running one finger down his wing.

"Don't worry, I'll take care of it," he told her soothingly. "Oh, my sugarplum, how my spark aches for you."

"You romantic little sweetie-pie," she cooed, pinching one of his cheeks.

"You delectable little cupcake!" he said back, kissing her forehead. "You are _so _cute!"

"You're even cuter!" she giggled.

"No, you're cuter!"

"No, _you_'_re _cuter!"

"You're the cutest one of all!" Skywarp lovingly kissed Moonbeam's head. "And I won't hear otherwise, darling."

"Throw me over your shoulder and take me to the bedroom, sweetheart!" she squealed.

"Yes indeed-y, my sweet snuggly little—"

"SHUT UP!" Thundercracker yelled at them. "Can you _please _talk in words that _don_'_t _make me want to throw up in my own mouth?"

"Let's go, hon," whispered Skywarp, throwing his love over his shoulder, and off they headed for the bedroom.


	4. Mechs' Night Out

Starscream had never seen Skywarp so happy. As days passed, the two of them became even more inseparable, holding hands like they would never let go, kissing each other, talking in baby voices…Skywarp held doors open for Moonbeam, carried her around, bought her flowers, jewelry, presents, anything she asked for.

If anyone so much as looked at Moonbeam, Skywarp would take out his weapons and prepare to fight him. As far as Starscream could tell, they were 'facing at least once every day. On the few nights when Skywarp actually joined his brothers in the room they all three shared, all they would hear was his dreamy voice, whispering her name: "Moonbeam this…Moonbeam that…"

On the other hand, Starscream had never seen Thundercracker so _unhappy_. Thundercracker insisted he had no feelings for Moonbeam; she was Skywarp's femme exclusively. His only defense for his actions was that Skywarp was just "being stupid".

"Do you want to come flying with me, Thundercracker?" Starscream asked, approaching his brother one afternoon. Thundercracker was sitting on the couch next to Skywarp and Moonbeam, who were making out furiously again. There was a deep scowl on his face.

"Anything to get away from these fools," he muttered, jumping up. Moonbeam knocked Skywarp backwards onto the couch and wrapped herself around him, squealing his name.

"Seriously, TC, what's bothering you?" Starscream whispered.

"They're being disgusting!" Thundercracker hissed. "Why don't they go make out in the bedroom?"

"They're happy," Starscream said back. "Leave them ALONE, will you?"

"I thought you invited me to go flying," Thundercracker snapped. "Not to just lecture me."

"Sorry," Starscream muttered.

Part of the reason why Starscream was inviting Thundercracker to practice flying with him was because he was sure it would improve Thundercracker's mood. After all, flying had _always _cheered him up when he was upset over something. Starscream still thought Thundercracker had a thing for Moonbeam, but he couldn't get him to admit it.

Once they were both in jet mode, up in the sky, Starscream turned his thrusters on full blast and soared past Thundercracker, who barrel-rolled in the sky and jokingly bumped Starscream's wing. Starscream bumped him back then turned around the other way, inviting Thundercracker to chase after him.

It reminded him of when they were sparklings—playing in the sky all day was their favorite game. Thundercracker must have been thinking the same thing, too, because his mood seemed to lift as he lowered closer to the ground and dove under Starscream, then shot ahead. They kept this up for hours, until finally Starscream got a call on his com. link. As he changed himself back to robot mode and lowered to the ground, he saw that the call was from Skywarp.

"THUNDERCRACKER!" Starscream shouted, gesturing to Thundercracker, who was looking down at him, curious as to why he had suddenly landed.

"What?" asked Thundercracker, quickly touching down.

"Skywarp called us." Starscream was sure Thundercracker would be happy that Skywarp was finally choosing to talk to his trine, rather than just virtually ignore them, as he had been doing for about the past week. (Most likely, it was unintentional, but he had been almost entirely focusing his attention on Moonbeam.)

"Let me guess, more babbling about that pretty little medic?" said Thundercracker sarcastically, crossing his arms.

Ignoring this, Starscream answered the call. "Starscream in. What's up?"

"Well, I know we haven't been spending much time together lately," Skywarp told them regretfully. "So I wanted to make it up to you guys. How about we three go out tonight and have a mechs' night out—my treat?"

"Sounds great!" said Thundercracker. "Why don't you come talk to us in person?"

Skywarp nodded, and the next thing they knew he was outside with them. "The only problem is, do you think Moonbeam will be okay with this?"

"Did you have anything special planned?" asked Starscream. "Besides the obvious, I mean."

"Well, no," said Skywarp, "but…"

"You know, you don't need her approval for everything," Thundercracker reminded him matter-of-factly. "Remember, you'll never be a mech if you let a femme tell you what to do."

"Moonbeam makes me feel all…fluttery," Skywarp whispered, looking up at the sky. "I love her."

Skywarp looked like he was about to melt into the ground, but Thundercracker's red eyes flashed with anger.

"Don't speak too soon, 'Warp," he said firmly. "Let's just go out tonight, and you can forget about her."

"So, where exactly are we going, then?" asked Starscream.

"Wherever you guys want to go," said Skywarp, putting his arms behind his back and swaying from side to side, looking lost in another world.

"_I _know somewhere we can go," Thundercracker told the other jets confidently, his arms folded across his chest, a grin on his face.

…

It was a place 'cons went to for extra money, femmes that is. The mechs were the ones who paid for the entertainment. Most likely, no Autobots knew it existed. It was located out in the wilderness, with a hologram making it look like nothing was there.

On the inside, though, past the hologram, it was anything but. It was a sort of replica of the Decepticlubs back on Cybertron, because (as some put it) mechs on Earth had their "needs" too. Drinks were available, of course, and weapons were encouraged, but it was mainly a smoky little place where mechs paid high prices for high entertainment. It was known as the Cybertronian Mechs' Club.

"Hey everyone!" said Starscream, bursting through the doors. "The Command Trine is back!"

Of course the jets had been there before, because most 'cons thought it was the best place to party, especially on Earth, where entertainment was hard to find. Skywarp, as promised, paid for their drinks and all three began to drink themselves into a stupor. Most of the energon was pretty strong, so that basically took care of itself.

For some reason, although Starscream and Thundercracker seemed to be perfectly willing to pay some high prices, Skywarp was just sipping some high-grade with a straw, watching with what could only be described as disinterest.

"How much for extra services?" Thundercracker asked one of the dancers, leaning across one of the tables.

"Don't be silly, cutie," she said sweetly, sitting down on his lap. "Here, _your_ kind gets it for free."

Thundercracker and the femme started to make out, while Starscream (also high) was cheering and throwing money onto the stage. Skywarp, quickly finishing his energon, went over to the table with the drinks for another shot—and was interrupted by one of the performers.

"For someone as hunky as you are, I can give you quite a deal," she purred, stroking one finger across his wings.

"Um, n-no thanks," Skywarp stammered, looking a little startled. "I-I mean, my girlfriend back at base, she…I don't think she'd really…"

"What she doesn't know won't hurt her," the femme cooed. "Come on, you _know_ you want to."

"I'm sorry, miss, but I really DON'T need your services," Skywarp insisted. "How's about I just buy you a drink instead?"

"Trying to get me high, huh?" she giggled. "Well, have it your way."

"I wasn't trying to get you high!" Skywarp told her. "I was just trying to be polite!"

"Look, hon, I can find another mech to do me in nothing flat," she said, crossing her arms. "You want this, or what?"

"No, sorry, I don't." Skywarp patted her shoulder and left.

"Did you see what you just turned _down_, moron?" Starscream whispered in his ear, turning away from the stage for a moment. "You must be crazy!"

"I was remaining faithful to Moonbeam, friend," Skywarp said sharply. "How can you not respect that?"

"All right, all right," Starscream mumbled, taking another sip of his drink.

**SEVERAL HOURS LATER…**

Of course, the Decepticlub was open 24/7, but eventually, the Command Trine (_all _high by now) got tired and had to stumble home. Starscream and Thundercracker had both gotten some that night, but Skywarp's pure love for Moonbeam had kept him staying at a table only.

Unfortunately, Moonbeam herself was the first Decepticon they saw after Skywarp teleported them back to base.

"Wherehave you been?" Moonbeam demanded, hands on her hips.

"Cybertronian Mechs' Club, hon," Thundercracker slurred, grabbing Starscream's arm to keep himself from collapsing onto the floor. "We had a mighty good time, too."

With that he slapped her on the aft, mumbled something about seeing her in the morning, and stumbled off to bed. Skywarp and Starscream, though, stayed put.

"YOU WENT TO A _STRIP CLUB_?!" Moonbeam screeched, eyes shut, hands clenched into fists.

"Please, baby, it's not what you think," Skywarp tried to tell her, though he was having a little bit of trouble talking.

"I can't believe this!" she screamed. "You and your idiot pack disappear without telling me, go to a strip club, and come home high on who _knows _what! What do you have to say for yourself, Skywarp? Did you have fun with the whores there?"

"Really, Moonbeam, I—" Skywarp reached out for her, but she dodged.

"No 'facing for you tonight, you worthless piece of scrap!" Moonbeam slapped Skywarp, then shoved him aside. For a second he paused, then ran from the room.

"What was that for?" Starscream demanded.

"You hush up!" she told him, and gave him a slap of his own. "You're a total wuss, the blue one is an obnoxious aft, and Skywarp acts like a moron whenever he's with you two! Don't you even _talk_ to me!"

With that she stalked away, leaving Starscream frozen there, mouth open, shocked beyond belief.

**TO BE CONTINUED…**

**Please read, review, and enjoy! **


	5. Not So Happy Together

Thundercracker had gotten so high last night, he had been in a deep stasis all morning—but Skywarp was a different story. All that morning, he couldn't stop openly crying, which Starscream hadn't seen him do since they were all sparklings.

"Please, Skywarp, don't cry so much," Starscream was insisting, rubbing Skywarp's back a little helplessly.

"It's…it's all _my _fault!" Skywarp sobbed. "Why did I agree to go to a strip club? What was I thinking? I-I'm a _terrible _boyfriend!"

"_All _couples fight every now and then," Starscream told him, hoping he sounded reassuring.

"But n-not us!" Skywarp wailed. "I thought w-we were th-that couple—the one that n-never fights! And she…she _slapped _me! I _am _a worthless piece of scrap metal!"

"Skywarp, that was the meanest thing I ever heard a femme say," said Starscream firmly. "I really think she should treat you better. It's _not _your fault."

"W-What should I do now?" Skywarp asked, sitting up and wiping his eyes.

"You could do something nice for her, I guess." Starscream shrugged. "Buy her flowers or a present or something."

"Well…she does love presents," said Skywarp reluctantly. "She told me there was a diamond necklace she wanted and I didn't get it for her yet—even though I promised I would!"

At this revelation, Skywarp started crying all over again. Starscream sighed and put his arm around his brother.

"Moonbeam will forgive you," he whispered. "I promise."

…

Trying to sum up all the courage he could, a very hurt Skywarp waited in the guest room where Moonbeam slept, flowers in one hand, the diamond necklace in the other. Now, he was still trying not to cry, but he wanted Moonbeam to forgive him.

When she finally entered the room, her neutral expression turned to shock, then anger.

"What are you doing in my room?!" she yelled. "Get out immediately!"

"I-I just wanted to say I'm sorry, Moonbeam," Skywarp insisted. "I got you some flowers, and that diamond necklace you so wanted."

Moonbeam looked shocked again, then tears formed in her eyes. When Skywarp saw she was crying, he held her close.

"I'm sorry too," she whispered. "You…you really didn't do anything last night, did you?"

"No, of course I didn't, kissy-wissy," he told her gently. "In fact, some femme was trying to offer her 'services', and I turned her down. Just ask Starscream if you don't believe me."

"There's no need." Moonbeam pulled away and wiped her eyes. "I trust you."

"I trust you too," said Skywarp, feeling relieved. "Now, don't forget what I brought for you."

With that, he took out the beautiful diamond necklace and draped it around her neck. She glanced up at him, red eyes shining, and they kissed.

…

"Somehow…I have a bad feeling about this relationship all of a sudden," Starscream was saying, more to himself than to Thundercracker, as he sat on Thundercracker's bed. Thundercracker was a little hung-over, so Starscream looked down to make sure he was conscious.

"I-I'm listening," said Thundercracker weakly.

"Last night, when I saw how badly she hurt him…" Starscream shook his head. "Before that, I thought she was really nice, and she was nice—but only when she got what she wanted. As soon as things didn't go just her way, she completely blew her top."

"Maybe it's just a femme thing," mumbled Thundercracker.

"You love her anyway, though, don't you, friend?" said Starscream.

"I told you, I do not _love _her!" Thundercracker insisted. "Will you please just let me rest today?"

"Whatever," said Starscream, heading back to his own bed. "I'm just not too sure this new girlfriend is good for him."

"What are you gonna do about it?" Thundercracker asked flatly. "After all, _you_'_re _the one who said they were all 'happy together'."

"I'm not going to do anything," Starscream mumbled. "I'm just going to go get something to drink. You can stay in here as long as you like."

So after Starscream left, Thundercracker found himself alone in the room again. What would he give to have a femme like that on his arm! Truthfully, he didn't know what had happened last night, because apparently he'd gone off to bed before the fireworks started, but apparently Moonbeam had done something to hurt Skywarp's feelings. It just didn't add up. Moonbeam was so nice, so beautiful, that Thundercracker couldn't imagine her doing anything mean. All he could imagine her doing—all he _liked _to imagine her doing, anyway—were things that were normally confined to the bedroom.


	6. Battlefield

"Good afternoon, Thundercracker," said Skywarp, walking into the bedroom. Thundercracker was drifting off into sleep again, but he jerked up when he saw his brother walk into the room.

"So, how did things go with Moonbeam, lover boy?" he said. Even though he hadn't done it intentionally, a little sarcasm crept into his voice.

"Well…it was all just a misunderstanding," Skywarp explained. "I guess she was mad that we left for the Decepticlub without letting her know first. I got her that diamond necklace, though, and some pretty flowers, and now we're all better."

"Lucky you," Thundercracker grumbled.

"Are you okay, TC?" asked Skywarp innocently, sitting down onto his bed. "I mean…you just haven't been acting the same, lately."

"What are you talking about, moron?" Thundercracker demanded. "Why would you think I changed? I haven't changed!"

"You're meaner," Skywarp whispered.

"Meaner!" Thundercracker stood up and looked down at Skywarp, who was staring down at the floor; he didn't look angry, just a little confused. "I can't believe you just said that!"

"Well, you _are_!" Skywarp stood up too. "I just want to know why! You're so…so distant!"

"_I_'_m _distant?!" yelled Thundercracker. "We hardly even _see _you any more!"

"If that's what you're worried about, there's plenty of me to go around, friend," Skywarp told him.

"No, Skywarp, you don't—" Thundercracker watched Skywarp, still refusing to look anywhere but the floor, his hands behind his back, a pensive expression on his face.

_Why does Skywarp get Moonbeam_? Thundercracker thought to himself furiously. _Look at this fool_! _It_'_s not fair_!

"I don't what?" asked Skywarp calmly.

Thundercracker's cover burst.

"You don't deserve her!" he yelled in Skywarp's face, pulling him by the wing. "You just sit there, being the stupid little excuse for a jet that you are, and Moonbeam comes into your life and fawns all over you! Why _you_? You didn't do anything! What's so special about you?"

Skywarp was just standing there, looking gobsmacked, but Thundercracker wasn't even looking at him.

"Do you think it's _easy _to start relationships, Skywarp?" he hollered. "Do you think love comes no matter what you do? Well, it doesn't! It DOESN'T! SO JUST GIVE UP! _GIVE UP_!"

Thundercracker leaned over, one hand resting on the bedpost, while Skywarp just stood there, his mouth hanging open. Thundercracker didn't notice it, but Skywarp's eyes were filling with tears as he ran out of the room, slamming the door behind him.

…

Starscream was sitting at the table, casually drinking some medium-grade energon with a straw, when Skywarp ran past him, hands over his face, eyes streaming with tears.

"Skywarp?" Starscream called. "What the slag happened? Did she dump you?"

"No, we're all made up." Skywarp sunk down onto the couch and tried to wipe tears away, but they kept coming; he couldn't understand why Thundercracker had been so mean to him. Thundercracker was being mean _all _the time. Why?

"So why are you so upset, then?" Starscream asked, getting up from the table and sitting down next to Skywarp.

"It was Thundercracker," Skywarp said quietly. "I just…I asked him why he was being so mean to me and Moonbeam…and he said the meanest things. Like that I don't deserve her. I-I think he hates me now."

"Oh, no," Starscream whispered. Thundercracker had finally let his jealousy get the best of him.

**SEVERAL DAYS LATER…**

Skywarp was still angry with Thundercracker, and Thundercracker was still angry with Skywarp. Starscream knew Thundercracker loved Moonbeam, and he knew that Skywarp was clueless to this fact (and thought he was being mean for no reason), but he didn't know what to do.

It was getting hard to handle. Starscream already had underlying suspicions about Moonbeam's true motives, and now Thundercracker, who had been trying to hide his jealousy the whole time, had let it all explode like a volcano, the lava falling onto poor Skywarp and melting him to ashes. The only thing that made him happy was his relationship with Moonbeam.

"I love you, sugar daddy," Moonbeam was whispering to Skywarp as she ran her hands up and down his wings. "Are you ready for our big night out tonight?"

"Of course," Skywarp said. "I love you too, kissy-wissy."

"I'm glad you bought me those new earrings and bracelet to go with my necklace," she told him. "I can wear them tonight!"

"You're beautiful with or without them, hon," Skywarp replied, and kissed her.

Moonbeam giggled. "Who's my little sugar daddy?"

"I am!" said Skywarp, and they kissed again.

Thundercracker, at that time, was sitting in front of the TV, pretending to watch it but really watching Skywarp and Moonbeam, deeply in love, making out on the couch.

Skywarp looked at Thundercracker and cried out, "Make sweet love to me, Moonbeam!"

"SHUT UP!" hollered Thundercracker. "Do you have no respect for your fellow Decepticons?!"

"You're one to talk!" Skywarp shouted. "I don't know ANYONE meaner than you!"

"Oh, what a fabulous retort," said Thundercracker sarcastically, rolling his eyes. "That's me outsmarted, isn't it?"

"At least I have a girlfriend!" Skywarp pointed out. "You're still single and lonely, aren't you, TC?"

"For your information, I _prefer _not to have a girlfriend!" Thundercracker lied.

"Oh, that's rich!" said Skywarp.

Thundercracker shouted an obscenity at Skywarp and they both started yelling simultaneously, with petty insults, profanity, and a whole lot of drama. Starscream was just hoping it wouldn't become physical.

_Moonbeam must be uncomfortable with this_, thought Starscream, knowing that he would've hated to be in her situation…but when he looked at her, she was sitting there safe on Skywarp's lap, grinning smugly. She was _enjoying _this. Every minute of it. And no one noticed. Not Skywarp, not Thundercracker.

No one but Starscream.

…

Starscream was lying down on his bed, watching Skywarp get ready to go on the date. Of course, Thundercracker was still in the main monitor room, hogging the TV, and Starscream assumed Moonbeam was in the guest room where she (and usually Skywarp) slept, getting ready for the date too.

When Skywarp was finally ready, he had some time to kill, so he sat down on the bed across from Starscream and asked, "So, how do I look?"

"Fine," said Starscream. "Want an energon cube?"

"Sounds great." Skywarp reached out for the energon and started drinking it. Starscream had several cubes with him; ever since the fight between Skywarp and Thundercracker earlier today, he had felt sick to his stomach, knowing what kind of femme Moonbeam truly was. At first he thought he could just drink the feelings away, but it didn't seem to be helping.

"So…how are things going?" asked Starscream nervously. Deep down, he knew that he had to do something, but he didn't know _what_. And he was too terrified, anyway.

"Moonbeam and I are in love again," said Skywarp dreamily. "I guess she was mad at me, but I got her the necklace and some flowers, and now look—our relationship's better."

Starscream winced. "I-I'm not sure that's such a good thing, 'Warp."

"What do you mean?" Skywarp looked confused.

_WHERE is your courage_, _Starscream_? Starscream was telling himself. Probably, he didn't have this much courage in him, and he didn't know if this would make things worse or better, but he had to say it.

"Moonbeam isn't the type of femme you think she is!" Starscream choked out.

"I think she's wonderful," Skywarp said.

"Listen, I know what kind of femme she is," Starscream insisted. "Have you noticed how she calls you 'sugar daddy'? Do you know what that means?"

Skywarp just shrugged. "I always thought it meant I was sweet."

"You _are_, Skywarp," said Starscream. "_Too _sweet. The term 'sugar daddy' means she's not in love with you…only the things you buy for her and do for her. She's the kind who'll sleep with _anyone _if he does what she wants."

"Th-That is _not _true!" Skywarp sputtered, pointing one finger at Starscream. "You're just jealous!"

"I'm not _jealous_!" Starscream told him. "I _wanted _you to be happy in this relationship…but can't you see what she's trying to do?"

"No, I can't!" Skywarp cried. "I know my girlfriend, and she would never do anything to hurt anyone!"

"What about that time she slapped you, then?"

"I deserved that."

"You did not deserve it!" Starscream walked up to Skywarp and shook him by the shoulders. "Who's letting a femme boss him around like a helpless little android? Who's putting up with her nonsense every time he doesn't do just what she says? Who's dating a femme who's just sleeping with him so he'll buy things for her? Open your _eyes_, Skywarp!"

"Oh, so this is how it's going to be, huh?" Skywarp pushed Starscream away. "Thundercracker is being a jerk, and now you're going to be one, too?"

"Of course not!" Starscream told him. "I'm trying to help you!"

"I don't need your kind of help!" Skywarp shouted, picking up his energon cube and throwing its contents at Starscream. "And if you can't accept my relationship and be happy for me, then that's your problem, not mine!"

"Well, if you're going to be that way, then get used by her! Get your spark broken!" Starscream looked down at the energon that had splashed all over his paint job and stormed out of the room. "See if I care!"

"FINE!" yelled Skywarp, slamming the door behind him.

"FINE!" Starscream yelled back.


	7. Just Let Go

**WARNING: Very graphic chapter ahead. No likey no ready…**

The anger burning in Starscream's spark slowly faded to sadness, great sadness, as he left his room, looking for somewhere to go. The only place he could think of was the med bay, which had been deserted ever since he'd recovered enough to leave it.

As soon as he'd hopped up on the repair table, Starscream covered his face with his hands and tried to slow down his breathing, slow down his thoughts, but he could think only of Skywarp and Thundercracker, his brothers, his friends.

When they were younger they used to do everything together. They were in a school play once in Seeker School; in fact, they might still have the tape somewhere. Starscream remembered how, when they were younger and he'd just learned to teleport, Skywarp would sneak up behind them at the top of the stairs and push them down. At home, they played in the sky for hours on end; at night they went downtown and knocked up femmes; they'd even won the "Best Friends" award in the school yearbook one time. Was all that worth _nothing_? Was a crafty, scheming femme really all it took to break apart the loyalty of the Command Trine?

Apparently so.

Feeling lost, with nobody to love him, Starscream lay down on the repair table, letting tears stream down his face and onto the table's hard metal surface. Then he heard someone clear his throat.

"Typical…hiding from your fears again, aren't you, Starscream?"

"Megatron?" said Starscream, sitting up. "What are you doing here?"

"From what I have observed, your Trine is gone," Megatron said shortly.

"Don't remind me," Starscream mumbled, closing his eyes and turning away.

"I've seen many a comrade fall in my long time as a Decepticon," said Megatron, sitting on the repair table next to Starscream. "Over the years, I have found that there is really only one way to deal with it."

"What's that?" asked Starscream, sitting up.

"Let go," Megatron told him. "Never let yourself get close to anyone. If you do not develop concern for someone in the first place, you will never mourn his demise."

"But…but they're my brothers," Starscream whispered.

"You must let go," Megatron repeated. "Powerful warriors know how to stand on their own two feet. You must learn to do so as well. No one can lose a war faster than he who is dependent on others."

Starscream pondered it for a moment. As much as he hated to admit it, Megatron might be on to something. After all, if he hadn't cared for the Seekers in the first place, there would be no place for them in his spark—and, thus, no empty space when they were gone.

"It's too late," Starscream said. "Nothing can mend my sorrow."

"Just let go…" whispered Megatron, pulling Starscream into his lap. "That's all you need to do."

"Really, Megatron, I'm not in the mood for this right now," Starscream told him, squirming.

"Well, _I _am," said Megatron.

Losing the Command Trine's friendship had basically put a dent in Starscream's libido, but when he saw his boss hold up the handcuffs, he couldn't help but feel a twinge of excitement down there all of a sudden.

Starscream felt the handcuffs snap onto his wrists as Megatron slid one hand in between his thighs, working its way up to his interface panel, trailing his fingers down Starscream's wings with the other. By the time Megatron's hand got there, Starscream had pressurized enough that, when he felt Megatron handling his equipment, he sighed and leaned back contentedly, not feeling the need to struggle any more.

No one else knew they did this, at least they couldn't prove it; usually, Starscream preferred to interface with femmes, but the pain and humiliation he felt every time he did the deed with Megatron gave him an exhilaration that he couldn't find anywhere else. Most of the time, he protested at first, but when the goodness kicked in, he just sat back and let Megatron do whatever he wanted with his body. This was the only time he enjoyed being submissive, and as far as he could tell, that was the way Megatron liked it too.

Megatron let out a quiet chuckle as he opened Starscream's interface hatch and teased, "Looks like I didn't need to turn my little pleasure drone on after all—you come built to run, don't you?"

"I-I can't help it," Starscream was saying, then moaned as he felt Megatron stroke his erect spike. "Enter me, please enter me."

"Well, you're _my _pleasure drone, aren't you?" Megatron replied, his voice low. "So you need to pleasure _me _first."

With that, Starscream found himself flung around so that he was on top of Megatron, who grabbed him and hoisted him up so that they were face-level. Starscream felt Megatron bite his wings a little and he flinched.

"P-Please don't…don't do that," he said, shaking his head.

"What I say goes," said Megatron shortly, slapping Starscream on the aft, and continued his biting as he worked his hand all the way down in between Starscream's thighs again. When he felt his boss's large fingers sticking themselves into him, he squirmed a little, closed his eyes, and let himself enjoy it…

It didn't last very long, though, until Megatron pulled his fingers out, one by one, then reached up and placed Starscream on the floor. Then he sat up on the repair table and spread his own legs. Starscream nodded and gave him the blow job, getting cut off all of a sudden when Megatron yanked his head backwards.

"Just a little bit more, pleasure drone," he said wickedly, "and you shall get your reward."

"W-What do you hunger for, Master?" Starscream whispered as Megatron lifted him back onto the table.

Megatron moved Starscream's hands all along his body, guiding them into the most influential places. By now Starscream had been waiting a long time for what he wanted, too, and when he felt someone's tongue running up and down his wings, he felt himself release all over Megatron's lap.

"So you've gone and done that already, huh?" Megatron hissed. "Well, I certainly hope you'll pressurize yourself enough for the next round."

"No!" said Starscream, landing on the floor when Megatron stood up. "Don't leave yet! I-I can do it again!"

"You don't overload before I do, pleasure drone," Megatron told him angrily, then shoved him backwards onto the floor. "You release for me alone."

Starscream sighed with relief as Megatron climbed on top of him and forced his legs apart. Thankfully, he was pressurized again within seconds, then he felt a sudden jolt of pleasure and sharp pain at the same time as the well-endowed Megatron pushed himself in.

"Yes, yes, that feels wonderful…" Starscream was saying, enjoying the sensation of being completely filled as his master reached the maximum point of pressurization.

"Quiet!" said Megatron, grabbing Starscream's hand, which was still handcuffed, but delicious waves of pain were still coming, and even though Starscream couldn't move and Megatron was still hurling insults at him every once in a while, he was loving every minute of it…but before he knew it, it was over as he felt his master overload inside him, and he knew he was doing the same thing at the exact same time. That was best, when they did it together.

After Megatron finished his release he pulled out, then stood up, with Starscream there, still on his knees. Megatron removed the handcuffs and as he left the med bay Starscream heard him say, "Well done, pleasure drone."

"Anytime, master," said Starscream, nodding his head, still dazed from the experience. His wings were stinging with pain from being bitten and slammed into the floor—actually, most of him was hurting, and his eyes were blurred with tears, but it was a good kind of hurt. It always was.

Megatron had given Starscream what he'd wanted most—the mixture of physical pain and pleasure that could distract him, albeit temporarily, from the fact that his world was still crashing down around him.

But as soon as Megatron was gone, Starscream broke down and started to cry, just thinking of the fact that he was now more alone than ever.


	8. Bad CNA

And so it went down for the next few days; Thundercracker and Starscream shared their bedroom, but they didn't talk to each other, and Skywarp stayed with Moonbeam. None of them were speaking with each other. Thundercracker just watched TV all day (when he wasn't scowling at Skywarp and Moonbeam), and Skywarp deliberately showed off his relationship with Moonbeam in Thundercracker's face. Starscream thought they were being petty and even ridiculous, and his spark was broken.

Starscream hadn't been out flying for two or three days, which he knew was a terrible mistake because flying was a necessity to keep any Seeker healthy, but he had been so depressed that he didn't want to do anything, even take to the skies—which normally would have cheered him up. All this drama had completely exhausted him, too; even though he got regular recharge, he woke up just as tired as he had been when he restlessly dropped into stasis.

So that morning, when he woke up, Starscream wasn't surprised to find that his wings were aching a little bit, and he realized his nausea from last night hadn't left, either. Being grounded for three days or more was just the limit, and it explained away the fact that his health had been apparently deteriorating over the past few days. As tired as he was, Starscream realized he needed to get some breakfast and then outside to fly.

By the time he got to the kitchen, his wing pain had increased, making it even harder to ignore. All his FDS ("Flying Deprivation Syndrome") symptoms seemed to increase when he moved around. Either way, he was feeling generally lousy.

Starscream made himself walk to the refrigerator and get a cube of high-grade. After all, he _would_ need fuel, right? Well…Starscream felt himself getting tense as he watched the fuel sitting on the table, but he couldn't bring himself to drink it.

"I-I'll come back to you later," Starscream told the energon cube, pushing it away, then stood up.

As soon as Starscream got outside, he turned to jet mode and soared up into the sky. The feeling was great—here, he was free from everything horrible that had been happening in his life since that stupid Moonbeam had arrived. This was all her fault; everything about her made Starscream sick.

And that was when he realized he didn't mean that figuratively—Starscream was confounded when he realized that being in the air was just making his nausea even _worse_. Well, maybe if he went a little bit faster…but as Starscream accelerated to top speed, he was horrified to feel his thrusters begin to falter.

_Okay_, _time to land_! thought Starscream, and started to turn to robot mode again, but as soon as he had, he felt the thrusters on his feet give out completely and he slammed onto the ground, face-first.

Feeling slightly panicked, Starscream ran into base, then sat down on the couch, wondering what went wrong. Never, _ever _had he experienced airsickness before. Seekers didn't get airsickness! Either way, it had happened.

_Maybe it_'_s because I didn_'_t drink that fuel earlier_, thought Starscream, making his way to the table where his breakfast was still sitting, waiting for him to drink it.

When Starscream opened the energon cube, he lifted it up to try and get a sip of it, but just _smelling_ it was enough to make him threateningly nauseous. Eventually, he managed to force a mouthful or two down—but then he felt his stomach lurch again; he'd barely made it to the self-maintenance room off his bedroom when he found himself throwing it all up onto the floor.

Then he heard a startled voice say his name: "Starscream?!"

It was Skywarp, who had apparently walked in on Starscream, who had been too sick to even notice.

"What happened?" Skywarp cried, sounding worried as he hoisted his brother up onto his feet. "Are you okay?"

Starscream shook his head, _no_, and Skywarp guided him to his bed.

"Sit down," said Skywarp, trying to stay calm and stroking Starscream's back. "Put your head between your knees…breathe…that's it…"

Once Starscream had calmed down a little, he swallowed and whispered, "Thank you."

"Please, tell me what happened?" Skywarp begged.

"I-I don't know," said Starscream, feeling shaky. "This morning I didn't feel so good…so I went to fly…and I don't know why but I-I got airsickness or something. I made the mistake of trying to consume some energon and now this."

"Why would flight make you sick?" asked Skywarp, and gave Starscream a hug. "_That_'_s _not normal. I think we should go and see Moonbeam."

"That's okay, 'Warp," said Starscream, shaking his head. "I'm sure this'll go away on its own."

"Only the medic will know for sure," Skywarp insisted, pulling on Starscream's hand.

"All this is giving me a terrible headache…" Starscream groaned and lay back on the bed. "I just want to—"

"What the—oh." Thundercracker glared at them as he stomped into the room. "It's you two."

"What the slag do you want?" Skywarp demanded, an equally nasty look on his face.

"Last time I checked, this was my room, son-of-a-glitch," Thundercracker snapped. "What, am I not good enough for you now?"

"Thundercracker, there's no time for that," Skywarp told him. "Starscream is really, really sick. We have to help him."

"Yeah? What's wrong with him?" Thundercracker grunted.

"My head hurts, my wings hurt, and I feel sick to my stomach," Starscream answered, struggling to sit up again. Skywarp gently pushed him back down.

"So go out flying, moron," said Thundercracker.

"You think I didn't think of that?" Starscream said back. "I thought that was the reason I wasn't feeling just right…but when I was flying, I got airsick or something, my thrusters failed, and I wiped out. When I got in, I had to throw up just by smelling my breakfast."

"Please, Starscream, you should really see the medic," Skywarp told him. "This is her job!"

"I hate to admit it, but he's right," Thundercracker mumbled.

_Of course YOU want to come see the medic_, _Thundercracker_, Starscream thought. _YOU_'_RE crazy about her_.

"All right, but please don't teleport me, okay?" Starscream asked. "Just thinking of that makes me—makes me—"

"Don't!" said Thundercracker, putting one hand over Starscream's mouth. "Let's just walk instead, okay?"

**AT THE MED BAY…**

Moonbeam was sitting on the repair table in the med bay, sipping a cube of energon, tapping her foot and waiting for the hours to pass. Being on call was so annoying. Sure, of course she liked being a medic, but that didn't mean she liked sitting in the med bay all day long, waiting for a sick or injured comrade to stumble in…but that was exactly what happened a moment later.

"We need help, Moonbeam!" Skywarp cried frantically, yanking Starscream into the room, Thundercracker right behind him. "We don't know what's wrong with Starscream!"

"Did he get injured?" Moonbeam calmly hopped off the repair table and walked over to the three of them.

"No, he's just got some kind of sickness, I guess," Thundercracker explained as Skywarp helped Starscream climb onto the repair table.

Moonbeam crossed her arms, looking bored. "What're his symptoms, then?"

"My head hurts, my wings are hurting more every second, I'm borderline fatigued, and I'm feeling horribly sick—with no appetite," Starscream repeated. "And NO, it's not because I haven't been flying enough because I already tried that and it just made everything worse."

"No other symptoms?" Moonbeam asked, absentmindedly turning her energon cube over in her hands. "No hot flashes, hallucinations, dizziness, temporary paralysis, out-of-body experiences…?"

"Definitely not," muttered Starscream.

"Hmm…well, I hate to be nosy, but as your health care provider, I have to ask you this," said Moonbeam. "Have you been 'facing with anybody lately?"

"No, of course not," Starscream lied, his face feeling hot as he thought of his experience with Megatron several days ago.

"Yeah, okay, I've been lied to about it before," said Moonbeam, rolling her eyes. "It's just that to be sparked up you have to have interfaced with someone first, and have you ever considered that as a possibility?"

"That's the biggest load of scrap I've ever heard!" Starscream yelled, pointing at her.

"Fine, don't listen to the medic, who happens to have delivered plenty of sparklings before and knows what she's talking about," Moonbeam said sarcastically.

"I-I can't…that's…why do you think I'm sparked up?" Starscream demanded, a little bit of fear creeping into his voice.

"Because you're showing a ton of symptoms, that's why," Moonbeam said flatly. "I don't know if you're having mood swings, though, or if this is just normal behavior for you."

"Are we going to test him?" asked Skywarp. Of course, he and Thundercracker were looking shocked too.

"Of course," Moonbeam replied. "I'll just need a sample of your CNA, we'll wait the hour it takes to register, then you'll be good to go."

"You know how much I hate needles," Starscream whined.

"You know how much I hate cowards," Moonbeam said back, grabbing her kit of medical supplies. "Just let me prick your finger and it'll be over soon, okay?"

Starscream shut his eyes and put his free hand over his mouth as Moonbeam used the needle to prick one of his fingers. It probably only took a few seconds, but to Starscream, it felt like hours.

"Now, this will tell us everything we need to know," said Moonbeam, putting the raw energon into one of her test tubes. "You three come back in an hour and I'll give you the results, okay?"

**ONE HOUR LATER…**

The four jets were back in the med bay again; Starscream was visibly shaking from both fear and anticipation; Skywarp and Thundercracker were pushing and shoving their way to the front to see the results of the test; and Moonbeam was just standing there, arms crossed, waiting for them.

"Now that you're back, we can look at the test," said Moonbeam. "The CNA sample we took earlier allowed me to enter your personal energy signature into this digital test which says…oh yeah. You're sparked with twins, Starscream."

"B-But I'm not…I'm not ready for that!" sputtered Starscream. "Are you sure that's legit?"

"There's more information on the receipt," Moonbeam continued. As she examined it, her neutral expression turned to a pensive, almost puzzled look. "Hmm…that's weird."

"What? What's weird?" asked Starscream frantically. It was hard to imagine _anything_ weirder than this.

"Well, your little dumplings aren't purebreds," Moonbeam replied. "Meaning, their other parent has no Seeker CNA. Who is he, anyway?"

"Um…I don't know." Starscream shrugged. Actually, he had a pretty good idea who the other parent was, but there was no way he would admit it.

"You do know that the test reports _both_ parents' energy signatures and designations, right?" Moonbeam said flatly. "Let's see who you're so ashamed of 'facing with, huh?"

"NO!" Starscream shouted, running over to her to stop her from seeing the designation of the other parent, but it was too late.

"You spread your legs for _Megatron_?!" she shrieked. Now it was her turn to be shocked. "I thought you guys hated each other!"

"Well, we do," said Starscream, staring down at the floor, feeling humiliated. "But that doesn't mean we can't—"

"I don't believe this!" Moonbeam interrupted him. "Of all the possible partners you could have, why in the name of Cybertron would you 'face with _Megatron_?"

Starscream shrugged his shoulders again, thinking of how although 'facing with Megatron was both incredibly humiliating and painful, it was also the most pleasurable and how, in the end, he could never resist complying. How could he explain that to everyone, though, if he didn't even know how to explain it to himself?

Seeming to sense Starscream's discomfort, Skywarp walked up to Moonbeam and kissed her cheek. "Why don't we just let Starscream rest a little, kissy-wissy?"

"Why don't we take a little rest too, sugar daddy?" Moonbeam cooed, and kissed Skywarp on the lips. "All this excitement's got me fired up!"

Skywarp and Moonbeam were indeed fired up with burning love, but Thundercracker looked fired up with burning anger. As that familiar scowl darkened his features, he flexed his wings a little and stomped up to his brother.

"STOP IT!" he hollered. "STOP IT RIGHT NOW!"

"What are you talking about?" Skywarp looked shocked as he pulled away from Moonbeam for a second.

Thundercracker looked at Moonbeam's beautiful face, and then over at Skywarp. This was becoming unbearable. Moonbeam was to be HIS mate, and only his! They were meant to be!

"You stupid freak!" Thundercracker pulled Skywarp away by the wing, ignoring his sudden yelp of pain. "You don't deserve the lovely Moonbeam! Leave her alone!"

"What, you think Moonbeam's too good for me?!" Skywarp yelled back. "You don't think I'm a good boyfriend?"

"You think you're a good boyfriend?" Thundercracker let out an artificial laugh. "You don't know the first _thing _about having a girlfriend!"

"At least I _have_ a girlfriend!" Skywarp shot back. "Who's the stupid freak now, huh?"

"Just who do you think you are?!" Thundercracker roared.

"Better than you!" Skywarp shouted. "If you were my friend, Thundercracker, you'd be _happy_ for me and my girlfriend!"

"If you were _my _friend, you wouldn't keep rubbing your stupid relationship in my face!" Thundercracker hollered, angrily shoving Skywarp back into the wall.

"I'm not rubbing my relationship in your face!" Skywarp grabbed Thundercracker by the wing. "_This _is rubbing my relationship in your face!"

To everyone's surprise, Skywarp delivered a hard-enough-to-dent punch to Thundercracker's faceplates, knocking him onto the floor. Thundercracker bolted up, seething with rage, and tackled the purple jet so that both of them were on the floor. It wasn't long before a full-blown fight had started.

The two Seekers were hurling insults and obscenities at each other as they tried to tear each other apart—more viciously than some Autobot/Decepticon battles, even. Starscream chanced a glance at Moonbeam, and she was leaning on the repair table, smirking, as usual. Obviously, she just loved it when these mechs fought over her.

"_I_'_m _right!" Thundercracker shouted. "Starscream, tell him I'm right!"

"No, tell him _I_'_m _right!" Skywarp interrupted.

"Shut up!" Thundercracker yelled. "Starscream! Tell him!"

"Oh no you don't!" Skywarp slapped Thundercracker. "Obviously, he thinks _I_'_m _right!"

"NO HE DOESN'T!"

"YES HE DOES!"

"NO HE _DOESN_'_T_!"

"YES HE _DOES_!"

And it went on and on like this, until—

"STOP IT!" Starscream screamed. "JUST STOP IT! Neither of you are right! You're just a couple of idiots who have betrayed the Trine and I don't want to talk to you or have anything to do with you or even _look _at you ever again because I CAN'T TAKE IT ANY MORE!"

Skywarp and Thundercracker froze in the middle of their fight and Moonbeam's smug expression turned to one of surprise as Starscream bolted out of the med bay without another word, slamming the door behind him.

**TO BE CONTINUED…**


	9. The Ugliest Thing

Thundercracker was asleep, snoring away like a chainsaw (as usual), but Starscream couldn't go to sleep, and not just for that reason. There was no comfortable way to sleep—sleeping on his front didn't feel right, obviously, and he couldn't lie on his back any more because his wings hurt, and of course jets couldn't sleep on their sides because of the wings.

So basically that left him to toss and turn all night, trying to forget about his being sparked and the fight his two best friends had started in the med bay. Immediately afterwards, he'd headed to his room and refused to talk to anyone for the rest of the day; at night, Thundercracker came in, but he fell asleep immediately.

Starscream felt a few tears leak from his eyes as he tried to fall asleep on his back again. Dear Primus, did that HURT. Ouch.

And that was when he felt someone gently tapping his shoulder. "Starscream? Are you awake?"

"Skywarp?"

Yes, it was Skywarp, sitting on the edge of Starscream's bed. The purple jet reached out and rubbed Starscream's forearm a little, then whispered, "I'm sorry about today."

"That's all right, 'Warp," said Starscream, sitting up in bed and putting his head in his hands.

"I brought you a present from me and Moonbeam," Skywarp told him, and held up a container of what looked like lotion.

"What is that?" Starscream asked.

"Moonbeam says your wings won't stop hurting until after your twins are born, but this ointment helps relieve it at least a little." Skywarp handed the ointment over, and Starscream gratefully took it. "And, she says after a little while you won't be feeling sick any more. In about a year or so you'll be holding a little sparkling or two."

"Thank you, Skywarp." Starscream fiddled with the ointment for a little and stared down at the ground.

"Are you scared?" Skywarp's voice was small and quiet.

"No," said Starscream, wondering why he bothered to deny it.

"Well, you don't have to be," Skywarp told Starscream, reaching over and giving him a hug. "Moonbeam's done this plenty of times before. I know she'll help you all she can, and so will I."

_Poor Skywarp_, Starscream was thinking. _Completely innocent to the fact that I don_'_t like Moonbeam and she doesn_'_t like me_.

"Yes, I'm sure everything will be fine," Starscream mumbled.

"And, you know, I don't judge you at all for 'facing with Megatron," Skywarp continued, shrugging. "If it's what makes you happy, then…"

"Well, it sort of makes me happy," Starscream told him. "It's the kind of thing where…he hurts me…but I do it anyway. I don't know. I just can't make myself stop."

"I don't know much about that sort of thing, Starscream," said Skywarp. "And I'm sorry to hear it…but I do know that when a sparkling is born, Cybertronians rejoice. Double that for when there are two of them."

…

Starscream was standing outside of Megatron's quarters the next morning, feeling more scared than he ever had in his life. When he got up, he had applied some of Skywarp's wing ointment, and it had helped a little, but it hadn't taken care of the underlying sting.

"Lord Megatron?" Starscream whispered, knocking on the door. When it opened, Starscream yelped a little in surprise, but it was just Megatron standing there, glaring at him, like usual.

"What is it now, Starscream?" he asked.

"Well, I-I kind of have something to tell you," said Starscream, starting to feel even sicker than he already did. Maybe it was his regular nausea, or maybe it was because he was terrified out of his mind. Probably the latter. "You should probably sit down."

Megatron looked a little confused, but sat down on his bed anyway. Starscream just stood.

"I don't have all day, Starscream," Megatron said shortly. "Spit it out."

"Please don't…don't put it that way," Starscream mumbled, clutching his stomach and sinking down onto the floor. "This is just kind of big news."

"What did you do, Starscream?!" Megatron demanded.

"I'm carrying your children," Starscream blurted out.

The words took a moment to register, but before he knew it, Starscream found himself being picked up and flung into the wall.

"WHAT?!" Megatron hollered. "YOU'RE _WHAT_?!"

"In about a year, I will give birth to your children," Starscream repeated, rubbing his helmet and staring down at the ground.

Megatron stormed over to Starscream and stood him up again. "I can't believe this. My CNA is finally being passed along, and you are the one who carries the sparklings. Starscream! My worst enemy! Carrying MY CHILDREN!"

"Well, maybe if you hadn't forced me into 'facing with you, it wouldn't have happened," Starscream said bitterly, turning away.

"You had as much to do with that as I did!" Megatron yelled, hitting Starscream so hard that he slammed into the wall again. "This is _your _fault!"

"How is it _my _fault?!" Starscream screamed at him, trying to stop himself from crying again. "I always let you do whatever you wanted with my body, letting you rob me completely of my dignity every time! And now, when you spike me and get your CNA into me, it's my fault? How does that work?"

"You faint-hearted coward!" Megatron hollered. Starscream cried out in pain as he felt himself get hit again, this time in the side of his face. "You pitiful excuse for a Decepticon!"

"That's a fine way to treat someone who just found out he's sparked with twins," Starscream mumbled, standing up as he rubbed his hurting face with one shaking hand.

"Leave my presence!" Megatron demanded furiously, shoving Starscream towards the door. "I don't even want to look at you, you disgusting little whore!"

Without another word, Starscream exited the room, trembling and wiping tears.

**SEVERAL WEEKS LATER…**

Starscream knew deep down that a new sparkling was always a good thing in itself, but ever since he got the "Big News", his life had become a living hell. For one thing, he had to tell everyone _else _at base that he was carrying Megatron's twins, and now that the secret was out, there was no end to the teasing he had to endure. Take Rumble and Frenzy, for example:

"_Starscream and Megatron_, _sitting in a tree_!

_K_-_I_-_S _-_S_-_I_-_N_-_G_!

_First comes love_, _then comes marriage_,

_Here come the twins in their baby carriage_!"

And then there was the simple fact that his symptoms alone were making him miserable. Every day he was plagued with headaches and especially sickness, and he'd given up on using the stupid wing ointment. It didn't work, anyway. All he wanted to do was lie in bed or on the couch all day, and the slightest things were ticking him off. If something didn't make him angry, it probably made him incredibly weepy, or happy for a little bit and then upset again.

Worst of all, he didn't really have anyone to help him. Sure, the medic was supposed to be helping, and sometimes she did, but she was usually out with Skywarp, making him buy things for her as he let her boss him around. Thundercracker would try to listen, but got bored or exasperated as Starscream's constant whining continued on. And, obviously, Megatron was no help.

One morning, about a month in, Starscream was lying down on the couch, a pillow behind his head and another underneath his wings. Megatron was sitting next to him, trying to force him to drink something.

"You know I don't care about you, Starscream," Megatron said harshly, handing a cube of nutritious high-grade out to Starscream. "But I might as well be treating my children right. So drink this nourishment immediately."

"I'm not thirsty," Starscream mumbled, holding his hand out. "Take that away before I throw up all over it."

Megatron whacked Starscream upside the head. "I command you to drink it!"

"I said I don't want any!" Starscream screeched, knocking the energon cube out of his master's hand and starting to cry again.

Megatron looked like he was about to do something dangerous, but that was when Skywarp and Moonbeam walked in, just about to go on their date.

"Starscream?" asked Skywarp, walking over to the couch, Moonbeam close behind him.

"I-I hate my l-life!" Starscream was sobbing over and over again. Megatron sat up and rolled his eyes.

Skywarp, looking concerned, lifted Starscream up and sat next to him on the couch. "You know, if you want me and Moonbeam to stay home with you instead of going out tonight, we can."

"That would be great," said Starscream gratefully, wiping his eyes.

"You don't want to go on our date?" they heard Moonbeam say, her voice a little shriller than usual. "Don't you love me, sugar daddy?"

"Oh, of course I love you, kissy-wissy," said Skywarp, standing up and putting his arms around Moonbeam. "It's just…Starscream is kind of going through a hard time, and I'm his best friend."

"But I'm your girlfriend," Moonbeam whined, managing to squeeze some fake tears out of her big sad red eyes. "You aren't _abandoning _me…are you?"

"No, it's always been you, Moonbeam," Skywarp whispered, closing his eyes and kissing the top of her helmet. "I love you."

"I love you too, sugar daddy," Moonbeam told him. "Could we please go on the date? I've been looking forward to it all week…and it would really mean a lot to me…"

"Starscream?" asked Skywarp tentatively. "Do you think you'll be okay without us?"

_Let_'_s see_, Starscream thought to himself. _I feel absolutely miserable_, _I_'_m stuck here with that jerk Megatron_, _I have no idea what being sparked up for the next year will be like_, _I_'_m terrified of giving birth_, _and I would be a terrible parent_. _Is it any wonder I_'_m depressed_?!

"Yes, I'll be fine," Starscream mumbled, sinking back down onto the couch. "Go have fun on your date."

"Thanks, buddy." Skywarp squeezed Starscream's shoulder and swept Moonbeam away. Just once, Starscream saw her turn around to look at him; there was an evil little smirk on her face, just to let him know who had won.

"You might be pretty on the outside, Moonbeam," Starscream muttered bitterly as they left the room. "But on the inside, you're the ugliest thing I've ever seen."


	10. All My Sparklings

**SEVERAL WEEKS LATER…**

Starscream flinched a little on the repair table as he felt Moonbeam's small hand roam around under his chestplate. All night long for a few nights he could swear his spark felt…different, a sparkbeat he was almost frighteningly unfamiliar with. And, of course, he'd felt the need to complain about it.

All too willingly, Skywarp had dragged him once again to the med bay. Thundercracker had flat-out refused to be in the same room with Skywarp, but Skywarp himself was there, one hand over Starscream's for comfort, while Moonbeam finished her doctoring.

"Well, it's just as I thought," Moonbeam said, sounding uncharacteristically sweet as she shut Starscream's chestplate closed again. "That's the sparklings you've been feeling in there."

Starscream felt too shocked to say anything, but Skywarp blurted out, "_Really_?"

"Yes, really," said Moonbeam, her voice soft, almost gentle.

"Hey, um…sparklings, it's me, your Uncle Skywarp!" said Skywarp, pressing his cheek to Starscream's chest; he sounded excited, almost giddy.

"They can't hear you just yet, sugar daddy." Moonbeam laughed and nuzzled Skywarp's wing.

"So how are you feeling?" Skywarp asked his brother. Lately, he'd seemed fascinated with this whole thing, almost like he'd never seen a sparkling before.

"Pretty good, I guess." Starscream shrugged.

And it was true. Starscream had been feeling a little bit better. Sure, his head and wings hurt more than ever, it still wasn't comfortable to sleep, and he still had some pretty freaky mood swings, but things weren't quite as bad as before. Starscream was able to keep fuel down, at least, and he had been feeling a lot more energetic, plus excited about the twins. It would only be bad if they were as annoying as Rumble and Frenzy, or if they both looked like Megatron.

"If you're feeling better, it means the sparklings are bonding with you already," Moonbeam explained. "For the first few months you aren't really used to another spark, another being, inside of your own, but once that small glimmer of life starts to grow into a sparkling, it forms a closer bond with you than anyone else ever could."

Skywarp squeezed Starscream's hand again and gave Moonbeam a little smooch. "Oh, kissy-wissy, that's the most beautiful thing I've ever heard."

"I should hope so, I heard my teacher say it when I took that sparkling class back in med school," Moonbeam told him, giggling.

Starscream let out a rather artificial laugh and cleared his throat nervously. "Um…Moonbeam? Can I ask you something?"

"What?" she said, turning away from Skywarp for a moment.

"Is it…is it really going to hurt when you have to yank them out of me?" Starscream rubbed his chestplate, trying to feel the sparklings again.

"I'm not going to yank them out of you, moron," she sassed. "My job is to help you deliver. And yes, of course it hurts. Not that I would know personally, but when the time came for my other patients to deliver, they didn't seem too happy during the process. Lots of bleeding, tears, and screaming, if I remember correctly."

"Oh, stop it, Moonbeam," Skywarp joked. "Starscream scares easy."

"I know," Moonbeam giggled, snuggling into Skywarp's chestplate as he wrapped his arms around her.

While Skywarp and Moonbeam were kissing and hugging, Starscream just tried to sit quiet and listen to his spark, knowing that there was not just one spark, or even two, but three inside of him now.

**MEANWHILE…**

Thundercracker was sitting all alone in his room, sulking on his bed. On the outside, he appeared to be brooding and angered, and he was, but on the inside that wasn't the only emotion he had to deal with.

Of course, he was jealous of Skywarp, who got to have Moonbeam all to his own, even though Thundercracker honestly believed that Moonbeam was better off as _his_ mate. There was a reason, though, why she wasn't—Skywarp found her first. And as much as he wanted to spike Moonbeam and spike her good, Thundercracker's primary loyalty to the Trine did not permit him to do so.

What did that mean, though? Right now Thundercracker _hated _Skywarp. Just looking at the purple jet made Thundercracker almost insane with jealousy and rage…but a small part of him, a part of him he was trying desperately to suppress, wanted his brother back.

Overwhelmed by misery, Thundercracker got up off of the bed and made his way over to a little box they kept in the corner with the words "Command Trine" scribbled on the side in Skywarp's messy handwriting. As Thundercracker sat down, took off the lid, and started going through the contents, he could feel his eyes beginning to burn with tears.

In that box were a lot of tangible memories that Starscream, Skywarp and Thundercracker had saved up over the years. Favorite toys from when they were sparklings; Starscream's old science projects; prizes and keepsakes; basically everything they had collected over the years and had been too nostalgic or lazy to just throw out.

Thundercracker dug around a little and picked out one of their yearbooks from Seeker School. It dated back a few million years now, but sometimes it felt like yesterday. Turning through the pages, Thundercracker looked at their photos—that was the year they'd won the "Best Friends" award. There were old photos of Starscream posing with the Science Club (his favorite extracurricular activity), and there was one photo of the three of them each wearing medals around their necks, from when they'd all three competed in a school-organized dogfight and destroyed the other team.

As he pulled the yearbook closer to get a better look at the pictures, Thundercracker was shocked to discover that an old tape cassette had fallen out from between the yearbook's pages.

"Oh, dear Primus," Thundercracker whispered, his voice shaking as he picked up the little tape. "It's _All My Sparklings_."

…

Thundercracker ran out of his room, the tape in hand, and almost smacked into Starscream, who was emerging from the med bay, Skywarp and Moonbeam following close behind him.

"Woah, watch it, buddy," said Starscream. "What's the hurry?"

"Look what I found!" Thundercracker shoved the tape at Starscream. "I found _All My Sparklings_!"

"You mean the…the play?" Starscream gently took the tape from Thundercracker's hands and held it in his own. "Wow, I thought we'd lost this old thing! Hey, Skywarp!"

"No, don't!" Thundercracker yelped, but it was too late.

"What's going on?" Skywarp asked, walking over to them, holding Moonbeam's hand.

"Thundercracker found the tape of that little skit we starred in," Starscream said excitedly. "_All My Sparklings_, remember?"

"Oh, wow!" Skywarp looked happy. "We have _got _to watch that thing."

"What's _All My Sparklings_?" Moonbeam questioned.

"Back in Seeker School, my brothers and I were in this comedy skit called _All My Sparklings_," Skywarp explained. "Thundercracker and I were the parents, and Starscream was our whiny, angsty teenage daughter. In the next scene where he gets dumped, I take on another role as his ex-boyfriend."

"That sounds hilarious, sugar daddy," said Moonbeam. "Let's watch."

So when the four Seekers got to the main monitor room, Skywarp put the tape in the TV and they all sat down to watch the million-year-old little tape.

The first scene took place in a living room, where Skywarp and Thundercracker were sitting on the floor in front of a fake TV, pretending to watch it. They did so for a few seconds, and then Starscream came in.

To the audience's amusement, Starscream was dressed like a young femme; for the sake of theater, he was even wearing a little makeup, and he had temporarily been given the same approximate color scheme as Autobot Arcee.

"Hold it right there, young lady!" Thundercracker hollered from the other side of the stage. "Before you go out, you remove some of that makeup and wash off that gallon of perfume!"

"But all the other femmes at school wear makeup!" Starscream whined. "You're just a pair of old farts!"

"That's no way to talk to your parents!" said Skywarp. "No leaving the house for a month!"

"I hate this family!" Starscream cried, putting his hands over his face and pretending to burst into tears. "I wish I was never born!"

With that, Starscream ran off the stage, sobbing hysterically (or pretending to). The curtains shut and the tape cut off, then started again a little later. Thundercracker was standing alone on the stage.

"After poor femme Starscream's punishment was over," he was saying, "she went out to see her boyfriend again. Unfortunately, there was a little turbulence."

Thundercracker left the stage, then, and Skywarp and Starscream entered.

"I have something important to say to you, sweetheart," Skywarp said, putting one hand on Starscream's shoulder.

"Yes, I will marry you!" Starscream squealed.

"No, no," said Skywarp, shaking his head. "It's just…I think we should maybe go our separate ways."

"You're breaking up with me?" Starscream shrieked dramatically, putting one hand over his mouth in fake surprise. "I can't believe it! Oh, you jerk!"

"Wait, baby, don't go!" said Skywarp.

"I never want to see you again!" Starscream sobbed, bolting off the stage. Skywarp left too; then Thundercracker came back.

"Starscream was upset because her boyfriend left her," said Thundercracker. "However, he was happy to be relieved of her whining. The end."

"And that was _All My Sparklings_!" Skywarp and Starscream chimed, darting onto the stage again, all three of them bowed, and the tape ended.

Thundercracker was laughing his head off, and Skywarp was snuggling Moonbeam. Before, the breakup scene had always made Starscream laugh, too…but as he watched Skywarp and Moonbeam cuddling on the other side of the couch, he couldn't help but feel that someday, somehow, Skywarp would end up in the exact same situation as Femme Starscream.


	11. Three Separate Worlds

**WARNING: This chapter is graphic! Tread with caution!**

Moonbeam chased happily after Skywarp as they both soared through the sky. They were having fun playing; Skywarp was winning, but he slowed down a little to let the femme he loved catch up. Once he was slowed down, Moonbeam sped up, zooming ahead of him and doing a barrel roll.

Skywarp heard Moonbeam laughing as the two of them kept flying. Now he was glad he'd invited her to go flying with him today. They both loved it and were having fun.

Once they'd been flying for a little, they both turned to robot mode again and sat down. Skywarp opened some energon cubes he'd brought from base so they could refuel…and have something to talk over, of course.

"Flying is more fun with you, kissy-wissy," Skywarp told Moonbeam. "Everything is."

"I know," Moonbeam giggled. "I'm an interesting femme."

"You're really the only femme I've ever thought about the future with," Skywarp continued. "I don't know how you do it, but you touch every place in my spark. I feel so happy when I'm with you, like nothing bad could ever happen to me. You make me feel vulnerable and strong at the same time. I love when our eyes meet and I can feel the love pulsing throughout both of our bodies. When we make love, that's the best feeling in the world for me…and I hope for you too. I would do _anything _for you, even if it meant risking my own life. I want you; I need you; I will never stop loving you."

Moonbeam, to Skywarp's surprise, had a few little tears leaking out of her eyes as she whispered, "I love you too, sugar daddy."

One soft, gentle breeze blew across the two jets as Skywarp gently took Moonbeam's hands in his, then pulled her into a long, passionate kiss.

…

Starscream was sitting in the main monitor room, watching _Seeker Daily Drama _on TV. Normally, he hated the show, and everyone else he knew hated it too, but he was just having one of "those" days again, and he felt that watching something stupid was just the thing for him right now.

It was pretty lonely, being there all alone. Skywarp had invited Moonbeam on a flying sort of date, and who knows where Thundercracker went; he had been gone all day. Next to Starscream were stacks of empty energon cubes, which he had been consuming all day long. Moonbeam was right about Starscream's appetite; it had returned in full swing, and it was actually much more forceful than he remembered it being.

So Starscream was surprised when he heard a familiar voice behind him: "You've had enough energon for now, don't you think?"

"Slag off, Megatron." Starscream took another swig of energon, regardless of the warning.

"Relax, I just wanted to ask about the sparklings," said Megatron calmly, pushing some of the empty energon cubes aside and sitting down next to Starscream. "Is everything fine with them?"

"What do you care?" Starscream grumbled. "I thought I was a disgusting little whore."

"Either way, Starscream, whatever is inside of you right now is my offspring, and I must ensure its health and well-being," Megatron insisted. "Have you talked to Moonbeam lately?"

"How could I have?" Starscream felt his eyes well up with tears, but he fought them back. The worst thing, he knew, would be to cry in front of Megatron again. "That stupid femme is always out with Skywarp, and even though I've known him for literally all my life, now he leaves me behind in the cold for her, even when I need him and Thundercracker most. I-I hate her."

"Don't cry, Starscream," said Megatron. "You'll stress my CNA."

"Stop referring to them like that," Starscream told him, then put his hands over his face. "They will soon be actual sparklings, and they're MY sparklings too."

"The twins are passing along the CNA of me, Megatron," Megatron snapped. "You are merely the carrier."

"Well, you've got the easy part!" Starscream cried, pointing at Megatron. "All you had to do was shove your spike into me one day in the med bay, and you're done! I have to be sparked with twins for a whole year!"

"That's why it's so unfortunate that you had to be the one to do it," Megatron told him shortly. "You _are _a faint-hearted coward. If you were not, you would be able to carry my offspring to term without complaint or suffering."

Starscream wanted to shoot Megatron for saying that, but he was too tired. Instead, he just fell back onto the couch and burst into tears again, despite his efforts not to.

"Y-You treat this like it's a joke," he was sobbing. "But you d-don't know that my life is r-ruined. My trine is…is g-gone, and I-I didn't w-want to have sparklings, I'm not ready for that yet, I just…I-I don't know!"

"Stop crying," Megatron repeated. "Crying never solves anything."

"Well, so far, nothing else has either!" Starscream felt like he would _never _stop crying.

"You aren't happy to be having offspring?" Megatron asked. "Not even a little?"

Starscream lifted up his head and wiped his eyes. "I don't know. Maybe."

"Turn around and lie on your back," Megatron instructed. "Shouldn't they be moving around a little bit by now?"

"Well, I feel this weird sort of fluttering thing, more often than not," Starscream told him. "I don't really know _what_ it is."

"May I?" asked Megatron, holding out one hand.

Starscream nodded. Why bother to argue?

With more gentleness than Starscream knew he had in him, Megatron placed one hand over the quite visible bump under Starscream's cockpit that contained the sparklings. For a few moments, nothing happened, then Starscream bolted up.

"Did you feel that?" he gasped.

"What?" said Megatron.

"I-I swear I felt it…kick or something," Starscream said breathlessly, falling backwards onto the couch again and placing his own hands over his twins protectively.

Megatron made an awkward sort of smile when Starscream grabbed his hand and pressed it on top of the sparklings again. After some waiting, there it was, the twins seemingly kicking for the first time ever.

…

"This sure is hot, ma'am," Thundercracker was mumbling as he felt his spike getting energetically sucked on. The femme's tongue was roaming everywhere, driving his nerves wild, while her hands stroked his cockpit. "You must be an old pro."

Of course she didn't answer, seeing as her mouth was "occupied", but Thundercracker felt her stifle a giggle. Just before he was about to release, she stopped her blow job and threw herself over him.

"I'm being paid by the hour," she cooed, running her fingers down one wing, the other hand still roaming around his southern regions. "Don't you think I'm going to try my best?"

Thundercracker felt himself release a little but not fully at her words. He let his hands slither down her legs to in between her thighs; she squirmed happily and hoisted herself up, then pulled him into a kiss.

"Your lips are sweeter than candied cyberberries, hon," Thundercracker moaned.

"If you overload more than twice tonight, sweetie, I can cut my prices in half," she whispered, then started to run her tongue up and down his wings; her metallic hands squeezed his spike and he forced himself to hold the transfluid in. Surely it didn't count as round one if he hadn't even entered her yet.

Thundercracker had been at the Cybertronian Mech's Club for most of the day, leaving his brothers and Moonbeam at base. Around dusk, when he was watching the dancers, this hooker had waltzed up to him, introduced herself only as "Gemstone", and offered him a good frag…at a modest price. Thundercracker, a little high on energon and yearning for some action anyway, had readily accepted.

At Gemstone's urging, Thundercracker let her sit on top of him, then pushed her back and eased himself in. Her legs were wrapped around his body and her soaking port was wrapped around his spike; his hands were both flat on the floor.

"Good job, Thundercracker," she moaned. "But let me show you how an old pro does it."

With this she shamelessly flipped him around without him even having to pull out so that she was on top. Her thrusts were fast and satisfying; it wasn't long before Thundercracker felt himself release completely inside of her.

Even so, he wasn't finished at all. This cheap thrill was perfect. It was helping to rid him of his irritating, unrequited Moonbeam fantasies, albeit temporarily. He pulled out for a little then sat back as she ran her tongue all the way down his body, from wings to cockpit to interface panel.

"Isn't it my turn now, hon?" Thundercracker asked in his deep voice, and he spread her legs; she squealed at the sensation of his tongue in her southern regions; when he felt himself getting pressurized again he lifted her head up and drew her into a kiss. She grabbed for his spike and shoved it in by her own means, to which Thundercracker let out a yelp…a very pleasured yelp.

"How did you get so, shall we say, fulfilling?" she teased. Since he was on top this time, it was Thundercracker's job to do the work—not that he minded…

"That's for me to know and you to find out, hon," he said huskily as she squeezed her legs around him tighter.

"Faster, sweetie, faster," she moaned, shoving her hips up and running her hands down his back.

Thundercracker completed his second overload and pulled out, then looked into Gemstone's gleaming eyes. She was a pearly white color, in contrast to the black-and-gold Moonbeam; she was not a Seeker and although she was attractive in a certain way, it was different than Moonbeam's kind of attractive.

Gemstone waited with a rather bewildered look on her face as Thundercracker's mind filled with thoughts of how it would be if he was doing this with Moonbeam instead of this hooker. The familiar filling of the pressurization he could only get for her was coming back, and he asked, "Gemstone…would you mind it if I called you 'Moonbeam'?"

Gemstone laughed. "Who's that? Your wife?"

"I wish," Thundercracker grumbled.

"Girlfriend?"

"I wish."

"Secret lover?"

"I wish."

Gemstone sat up and gave him an asymmetrical smile. "So is this just some femme you have a crush on? Because that's okay, you know? We can still do whatever you want tonight."

"She's…she's my brother's girlfriend," Thundercracker admitted.

"Starscream?" Gemstone gasped. "Oh wow, he'd be so angry if he knew you loved her too!"

"No, not Starscream." Thundercracker shook his head. "My other brother, Skywarp."

"Oh yeah, I forgot about him!" Gemstone giggled and knocked Thundercracker back down. "I forgot you guys were triplets."

"Yes ma'am, I'm about an hour older than Starscream and he's maybe thirty minutes older than Skywarp," Thundercracker told her. "Like I said, Moonbeam is Skywarp's girlfriend…so I can't really do anything with her, no matter how much I want to."

"So what does this lovely Moonbeam act like, then?" Gemstone cooed. "Because you'll find that I'm also a pretty good actress if I want to be."

"I'll show you," said Thundercracker, preparing to enter Gemstone yet again. "Let me show you some real fun, Moonbeam."


	12. Tension

That next morning, Thundercracker woke up to Gemstone. He had taken her home with him last night, as she had agreed to stay with him at base for a couple days. When they'd gotten home and entered the Seekers' room, Starscream was there, fast asleep. Since the last thing they wanted to do was wake him up, and Moonbeam and Skywarp were in the guest room, they headed to the 'facing hideout of choice—the med bay. They were both tired, and Thundercracker had finally run himself dry for the night, so they'd ended up just dropping into stasis, without anything really steamy happening.

So that was why Thundercracker woke up on the repair table that morning, with Gemstone, still asleep, wrapped up in his arms. He was thirsty and wanted some breakfast, so he gently shook her awake to see if she wanted something too.

"Good morning, handsome," she whispered, as soon as her eyes opened.

"Have a good sleep?" Thundercracker asked.

"Oh, yes," said Gemstone smoothly. "I was dreaming about you all night long."

"Thank you," Thundercracker told her. "Now, do you want to go get some breakfast? You can meet my brothers and the rest of the Decepticons, too."

"After so long living at that Decepticlub, I've always wondered what it would be like to live with Decepticons, not just charge them for a quick frag," said Gemstone.

"What do you mean, living at the club?" Thundercracker asked.

"I don't have a home of my own," she explained, shrugging. "So I spend my time in the club, looking for clients. You're the first one who's ever brought me home, though."

"Well, I'm sorry to hear that," said Thundercracker. "Staying here has got to be better than being at the club 24/7, right?"

"Oh, but I think you have a valid reason for bringing me home." Gemstone smirked. "We'll make that Moonbeam femme jealous, won't we?"

…

By the time Thundercracker and Gemstone had entered the main monitor room, Starscream was already there, watching the blaring TV and snacking on a huge pile of sparkling red energon—the rarest kind. Megatron would scarcely let anyone consume it.

"Oh, hey, Thundercracker!" said Starscream, then shoved another handful into his mouth. "Who's that?"

"This is my new girlfriend, Gemstone," Thundercracker said proudly, slipping one arm around Gemstone's waist. Gemstone smirked and giggled.

"Nice to meet you." Starscream's voice was a little muffled as he struggled to swallow the little red pieces of energon.

"Where did you find our rare red energon, Starscream?" Thundercracker asked warily. "You know Megatron doesn't like us to eat it on a regular basis."

"Oh, I've been craving them like you wouldn't believe the whole past week, but I had to wait until today, when the boss was on a mission," said Starscream colloquially, then flicked one of the little pieces over to Thundercracker. "Want one?"

"No thanks," said Thundercracker, catching the fuel in his hand, then giving it to Gemstone. "Do you want it?"

"Thanks, honey bunch," she cooed, and popped it into her mouth. "Mm…no wonder these things are so rare! They're delicious!"

"Aren't they, though?" Starscream didn't even bother to chew his next one.

"You know, Screamer, just because you're carrying doesn't give you the right to sit on the couch all day hogging the TV and inhaling our entire fuel supply," Thundercracker said matter-of-factly, sitting down next to Starscream.

"Um, yeah, it does," said Starscream.

"What the—you're carrying?!" shrieked Gemstone, then sat down on Starscream's opposite side. "That's adorable! When is your sparkling coming? What are you going to name it?"

"They'll be here in a little under five months," said Starscream, eating yet another handful of red energon, "and we haven't decided on the names yet."

"THEY'LL be here?!" Gemstone repeated. "Multiples?"

"Yes, twins," said Starscream, smiling a little. Luckily, he seemed to be in an unusually good mood today. "In fact, they were kicking for the first time yesterday…and a little this morning too."

"Oh, congratulations on your new little ones!" Gemstone squealed, and gave Starscream a hug.

"That's great news, Screamer," said Thundercracker, patting Starscream's shoulder.

"So…who's the other parent?" Gemstone asked. "It wasn't you, was it, TC?"

"Definitely not," Thundercracker said quickly. "Seekers are meant to interbreed, of course, but I wouldn't ever mate with Skywarp or Starscream."

"So who was it, then?" Gemstone still looked curious. "One of the other jets, I suppose?"

Starscream almost choked on his mouthful of red energon. Thundercracker, noticing his panic, decided to swoop in and rescue him.

"Actually, we don't have any idea who the other parent is," Thundercracker told her.

"That's impossible," said Gemstone. "On the standard test, both parents' names show up."

"Well, he didn't take a test," Thundercracker lied. "We didn't know he was sparked up until it got to the point where it was obvious. That sort of thing happens."

Gemstone shrugged. "I guess so."

Starscream sighed in relief, and Thundercracker shot him a look that clearly said, _You owe me one_.

That was when they heard familiar voices around the corner.

"Thank you so much for that box of candied cyberberries, sugar daddy," Moonbeam was saying flirtatiously as she and Skywarp walked into the room.

"Oh, no problem, kissy-wissy," Skywarp said back. "You know I'll always—hey, who's she?"

"Call me Gemstone, hon," said Gemstone, walking up to Skywarp's cheek and rubbing it. "I'm Thundercracker's new girlfriend."

"You have a _girlfriend_?!" Skywarp gasped.

"Didn't think I was capable of that, did you, friend?" Thundercracker smirked.

Moonbeam walked up to Gemstone and quickly shook her hand, but it was obvious from the way her wings twitched slightly and the poorly disguised look of revulsion on her face that she didn't think very highly of Gemstone. Once the handshake was over, Moonbeam wiped her hand on her leg.

"Nice to meet you," said Moonbeam. Her greeting included all the businesslike politeness due a new acquaintance, but it wasn't sincere.

"My, my, Moonbeam, might I compliment you on that lovely paint job?" said Gemstone. "The dark black does contrast quite amazingly with the beautiful blaring gold. Bold, yet understated."

"Oh, but yours is so much _better_," Moonbeam said back. "Only that pearly white, with no bright or lively color? Effectively minimalist."

"And your interestingly small size!" Gemstone continued. "Why, I'm quite jealous. You must be an amazing flier."

"It's not _all _about speed or silly tricks," said Moonbeam, shooting a mean glance at Starscream, who narrowed his eyes. "Besides, these wings just get in the way. You noticeably don't have any, so I'm sure any mech you want could scoop you into his arms and carry you away!"

"Don't be silly." Gemstone grinned and shook her head. "I admire your willingness to stand by only one mech…no matter how much of a blundering fool he is."

"Well, I try not to lower my expectations to the point where they're already met." Moonbeam laughed again. "Silly me, working so hard every day."

"I have the opposite problem!" Gemstone let out a loud laugh too. "You don't know how right you are. I'm always reaching for the stars, never giving up hope on those dreams of mine!"

"Oh, don't worry, I'm always being an idiot too." Moonbeam smirked. "For example, when I was treating one of my patients yesterday, I almost gave him the wrong diagnosis!"

"You're a medic?" said Gemstone.

"Yes I am," said Moonstone. "What do _you_ do?"

"Well, I'm kind of in-between right now," said Gemstone. "You're so very smart! You know how I am, always waiting around to find my calling, instead of sticking with the same job for years like you do."

"I could _never _do what you do!" said Moonbeam enthusiastically, a smile on her face but her eyes flashing red. "I so admire you for just waiting for the right job to come along."

Gemstone and Moonbeam continued their "conversation", while the Command Trine shot looks at each other.

"Are they arguing or bonding?" Thundercracker whispered.

"I don't know, but this room feels awfully tense all of a sudden," Starscream whispered back.

Thundercracker shrugged, then got up and walked over to Skywarp and the two femmes. "Now, now, that's enough, ladies."

"I've got a _lovely _partner," said Gemstone.

"We're headed for the bedroom," said Thundercracker. As he swept Gemstone away, he shot a satisfied glance back at Skywarp, whose mouth fell open. "Don't wait up for us."

**LATER THAT DAY…**

Starscream had been taking his stasis nap in his room, so Thundercracker and Gemstone did their 'facing in the med bay, of course. When Thundercracker came back into the room, he was alone.

Since he had only been in a light sort of stasis, Starscream jerked awake when he heard his brother come into the room. Thundercracker looked very satisfied with himself, so the first words out of Starscream's mouth were, "Thundercracker, how could you?!"

"What are you talking about?" snapped Thundercracker. "Finish your stasis nap, Screamer."

"Thundercracker, I cannot _believe _you picked up a femme at a club and brought her home just to spite Skywarp and make Moonbeam jealous!" Starscream screamed, all in one sentence.

"That's a lie and you know it!" Thundercracker shouted. "Gemstone is my girlfriend and I love her!"

"It was so _obvious_!" Starscream told him, frustrated. "She was even _in _on it, wasn't she?"

"You know what your problem is, Starscream?" Thundercracker said angrily. "You claim you're so happy for everyone, and that you just want everything to go all hunky-dory, but as soon as somebody else gets a chance in the spotlight, you can't handle the pressure!"

"So now you're reducing yourself to grandiose generalizations again, huh, TC?" growled Starscream, jumping out of bed. "You were always the brooding, pondering one, weren't you? The one who always knows how everybody else operates? You think you know me _so_ well, don't you?"

"I do!" Thundercracker shouted at him. "You're just an annoying little piece of slag, and you always were!"

"It takes one to know one, _fool_!" Starscream screamed back.

"WHAT THE SLAG IS GOING ON IN HERE?!" Skywarp hollered, banging the door open.

"Oh, nothing, Starscream's just demonstrating his horrible personality to everyone again," said Thundercracker, glaring at Starscream.

"Why you—!" Starscream shouted another obscenity at Thundercracker and tried to attack him, but Skywarp gently held him back.

"Please, Starscream, don't," he insisted. "Stress is the last thing you need right now. Minimal stress is essential for any sparkling's well-being."

"Then I guess our carrier must have had a lot of stress when she was sparked with us," said Thundercracker. "And, of course, Starscream acted in his usual selfish way and took _all _the side effects for himself."

"That's hurtful and you know it, Thundercracker," Skywarp reprimanded him.

Thundercracker expected Starscream to try to hurt him again, but instead Starscream just put his hands over his face again and sunk down onto his bed. Thundercracker was still angry, but he felt his spark soften just a little as he watched Starscream try to hold back a fresh wave of bitter tears.

"Please, you two, just leave me alone," he mumbled. "Please."

"Oh, Starscream, you don't need to be left alone," Thundercracker said quietly, sitting next to his brother. "You need a hug, don't you?"

"It's true." Starscream leaned into him, sounding heartbroken. "I need _lots _of hugs."

"Just let it all out, Starscream," Thundercracker whispered, giving Starscream the much-needed hug. "It's okay to cry."

"Th-That's not what Megatron said." Starscream wasn't crying (yet), but he sounded very choked up.

"Well, he doesn't know what he's talking about," said Skywarp, sitting down next to Starscream and joining the group hug. "The absolute worst thing you can do right now is leave everything bottled up inside of you. Let us be here for you, anytime you need us…please."

"Sometimes I don't even know _why _I suddenly get so sad," Starscream told them, and his voice broke. "I go from angry to sad to happy all in one minute and I'm so tired of it. I go through all these crazy temper tantrums and then I realize that I took everything out on everyone and then I start craving that stupid red energon and I feel bad and then it starts all over again. I feel like everybody hates me for acting like I do."

"Nobody hates you, Starscream," Skywarp soothed. "We _understand_ that things are hard for you right now. You've got to believe that."

"You've only got five more months to go," added Thundercracker. "After that, I'm sure it will all be worth it."

"Moonbeam said I have to stay grounded for the last three months," Starscream told them sadly.

"It's because you won't be able to fly correctly with all the extra weight," Skywarp explained. "Don't worry. We'll stay with you…and only go out flying when we need to. Trust me, we'll make sure you aren't missing anything."

Starscream leaned back onto the bed, preparing to go into stasis again. Thundercracker and Skywarp stood up, and Skywarp tenderly tucked Starscream in.

"Tell the sparklings we love them both and can't wait to meet them," said Thundercracker, squeezing Starscream's shoulder.

"I will," Starscream whispered, and drifted peacefully into stasis.


	13. Family Matters

It was getting increasingly harder, but Starscream was managing to lug the huge, heavy crib into base. This couldn't possibly be good for the sparklings, but nobody else had volunteered to carry it at the moment.

That was when Skywarp walked in, though, with a dreamy look on his face—obviously thinking about Moonbeam. When he noticed Starscream with the heavy furniture, though, he ran right over, looking concerned all of a sudden.

"Starscream, what are you doing carrying that?" Skywarp demanded.

"Well, considering I have hardly four months to go now, I figured we should put this crib in our room, don't you think?" Starscream grunted, trying to keep the crib lifted up.

"Let me help you," said Skywarp, grabbing onto the crib, and they teleported into the Seekers' room, where Skywarp worked on pushing the crib into the corner.

"Thank you, friend," said Starscream gratefully, then collapsed onto his bed.

"Moonbeam says your twins are developed enough that if they were born now, they would probably survive," Skywarp told him.

"It's probably going to get annoying later on, but for now I actually like all these jabs and jolts I've been feeling," Starscream added. "It's like their way of telling me they're doing fine."

"This is really the exciting part, you know," said Skywarp, plopping down on the bed next to Starscream. "You get to set up their living space, like with the crib, and wonder what they'll look like and act like, if any of them will look like you…and it's so nice that you put the crib in here. That way you'll always be there if they need you at night."

"Exactly," said Starscream. "You probably don't know what I mean, but I love them already."

"Oh, I know what you mean, friend," Skywarp said happily. "Do you mind if I…y'know…?"

"Go ahead," said Starscream. "Now that I'm eight months in, half the people I encounter are trying to feel the sparklings. Apparently my body's public property now."

"Sorry…" Skywarp looked a little embarrassed. "It's just…I really like sparklings…and I'm their uncle…so I just thought maybe…"

"I'm just giving you a hard time, 'Warp." Starscream was laughing. "It's okay."

Skywarp closed his eyes and put his head and hands on top of the sparklings; Starscream set one hand there too. Skywarp kept his eyes closed, but he smiled gently and whispered, "Wow, I really _can _feel them in there."

"I think they're old enough to hear now, actually," said Starscream. "You can try and talk to them if you want."

"Listen, sparklings, it's your uncle Skywarp," Skywarp told them tenderly, still pressing his head to Starscream's stomach and looking so happy. "I can't wait to meet you. I love you both so much and I wish you were here right now so I could pinch your little cheeks. I guess I could sing to you now if you—"

"Now, now, Skywarp, I said you could _talk _to them," Starscream reprimanded him. "Not _sing _to them."

When Skywarp sat up again, there were a few tears shimmering in his eyes as he said, "I wish these were my sparklings, not Megatron's."

"Um…that's messed up, 'Warp," Starscream told him, looking more than a little weirded out.

"Oh, no, th-that's not what I meant at all!" Skywarp laughed nervously. "I mean, I wish they were mine, but the carrier was Moonbeam, and we were starting a family. That would be the best thing in the world."

"I didn't know you were looking so far ahead into the future," said Starscream. "You really want to start a family with her?"

"There's nothing I would love more," Skywarp replied. "I mean, we haven't talked about it yet…but I'm sure she feels the same way as I do about this."

"I'm sure she does, too," said Starscream, but he was really thinking, _I HOPE she does_, _too_.

"Imagine that." Skywarp was looking dreamy again, lost in another world. "We would be the perfect family. I would be the perfect father and she would be the perfect mother, and I could teach our little sparklings everything I know…help them learn how to fly…"

"Skywarp, if you had sparklings with Moonbeam, they would be purebreds," Starscream reminded him. "They'd have a 100% chance of being able to fly instinctively from about a week after birth. You wouldn't have to teach them."

"What about your twins?" asked Skywarp. "They've only got Seeker CNA on your side."

"Our race consists mainly of the dominant traits," Starscream explained. "Chances are that at least one of them will grow up to be a natural flier, and both will most likely have Seeker qualities. Actually, being a ground-bound Decepticon is very recessive, possibly a result of minimal inbreeding between Decepticons and Autobots, who are typically grounded. Of course, when it comes to CNA nothing's guaranteed, but when you look at it logically—"

"I failed that CNA class back in Seeker School, remember?" Skywarp shook his head and laughed. "Thundercracker didn't even bother taking it."

"It was called 'Decoding the Cybertronian Genome', genius," said Starscream sarcastically, "and I'll have you know I did very well in it."

"I know you did," said Skywarp. "You were always our big science nerd."

"Hey, I got along just fine with the femmes," Starscream protested.

"I never said you didn't," said Skywarp, smiling, then gave Starscream a hug. "Well, no matter what happens, I'll always be very happy for you."

…

Skywarp knew Moonbeam was on call today, so he went to the med bay and knocked a little nervously on the door. In his hand he was holding some flowers, just for her.

"Who is it?" called Moonbeam.

"It's your loving boyfriend," Skywarp said through the door. "Nothing's wrong, but do you have a little time to talk?"

Moonbeam opened the door, laughed, and led Skywarp to the repair table. "I have plenty of time for you, sugar daddy."

"Listen, I just wanted to talk to you about something," Skywarp said, handing the flowers to Moonbeam. "Something really important."

Moonbeam looked interested now. "How important?"

Skywarp sat up on the repair table and looked away from her. "Well…you know how Starscream's been carrying for a little over eight months now, right?"

"No, I didn't know that," she said sarcastically. "Look, hon, can we wrap it up, please?"

"It's just that I'm really excited to meet the sparklings, and…" Skywarp smiled slightly. "I just wanted to know if you see sparklings in _our_ future too."

Moonbeam's red eyes were wide, her mouth open; Skywarp hadn't seen her this shocked in awhile. For a little bit she fiddled with the flowers, then laughed artificially.

"What?" asked Skywarp.

"Look, sugar daddy, we haven't even been with each other for a year!" Moonbeam hopped up onto the repair table next to her boyfriend. "I love being with you, but I didn't have our entire lives planned out yet!"

Skywarp could feel his face heating up. "You don't…you don't want a family?"

"I might," Moonbeam told him, holding onto his forearms and making her voice soft. "Just not now. Okay?"

"Okay," Skywarp said quietly. "I can deal with that."

"Come on, sugar daddy, I've been on call all day long and nobody's gotten sick," said Moonbeam, grinning. "Do you want to get a little frisky?"

Skywarp thought of Megatron and Starscream's little sparklings, almost ready to be born. Surely Starscream would allow him to hold them…right? But it wouldn't be the same. Those adorable new sparklings might be his nephews or nieces, but they would never be his sons or daughters.

"I-I'm sorry, Moonbeam," said Skywarp sadly, hoisting himself off the repair table. "I have to go."


	14. Fight Like a Femme

**ONE MONTH LATER…**

"Dear Primus, I cannot _understand _what you see in that Moonbeam femme," Gemstone was saying to Thundercracker, her voice full of disgust. "I've never met anyone as mean as Moonbeam! Just because I charge mechs to 'face with me, she totally judges me. She doesn't even _know _me. Do you know _why _I have to be this way?"

"Um…no," said Thundercracker uncomfortably. "Should I be asking why?"

"My carrier got sparked when she was still young because someone forced her to 'face with him," Gemstone said angrily. "So I never met my 'father' and I don't ever want to meet him. And my carrier had to drop out of school because of him. And she couldn't support me. Then she abandoned me. And I was homeless. I didn't exactly have a lot of options at that point."

"Look, I'm sorry to hear that," Thundercracker said, placing one hand on her shoulder. "But Moonbeam's not really all that bad."

"You only like her because she's pretty, don't you?" Gemstone demanded, her voice sounding a little choked up. "If she was as hideous on the outside as she is on the inside, you wouldn't love her."

"No, that's not it at all!" Thundercracker insisted. "Moonbeam is really nice. And she's a great medic. Starscream was almost killed awhile ago due to an energon cube exploding in his face or something and she fixed him up."

"Well good for her!" Gemstone shouted. "She thinks she's so great because she's a medic and all, and she doesn't realize that not everyone has a life as easy as hers! I wanted to have a nice job, a nice life, too. But not everyone has their life handed to them on a silver platter. Sometimes you just can't get what you want and you have to be a hooker."

"Gemstone, I know that getting a quick frag from you is not the only aspect of your personality," Thundercracker told her. "You're a great femme. You can always stay with us, as long as you want to—but if you don't want to stay, I understand."

"I'm staying for two reasons," Gemstone said angrily. "One, because this is the first time in my life I've ever had decent living accommodations. Two, because I'm going to be the best fake girlfriend that Moonbeam femme will ever slaggin' meet."

…

"Oh, Thundercracker, I love you _so _much," Gemstone was cooing, running her hands up and down Thundercracker's body. As her hands caressed his wings, he shivered and let out a sigh of pleasure; she stroked his face, and they kissed.

As they were making out furiously, Thundercracker paused for a moment and saw Skywarp standing in the doorway, looking at them, the expression on his face unreadable.

_What_'_s it like to be on the receiving end_, _huh_, _Skywarp_? Thundercracker thought as he separated himself from Gemstone smugly.

"Do you want to stay with me for the rest of my life, Gemstone?" asked Thundercracker.

Gemstone noticed Skywarp and giggled. "Oh, yes! I would love to start a nice big family with lots of nice little sparklings!"

"We could live in a nice big house, too," Thundercracker added. "Just you, me, and our big happy family."

What Thundercracker didn't know was that, although they had been on speaking terms up until now, Skywarp and Moonbeam's relationship hadn't been exactly peachy lately. Yesterday, Skywarp had initiated the "do you want children" talk with Moonbeam again, and she had gotten angry. The answer had been a big fat "no" this time. They were now in a fight, not on speaking terms at all, and Skywarp felt abandoned and heartbroken.

"Imagine the backyard energon parties we could have…" Gemstone continued. "Why, I could teach the sparklings how to cook!"

"I didn't know you could cook, Gemstone," said Thundercracker. "I know you would be the _perfect _wife, Gemstone."

"We would be the perfect parents," Gemstone added. "Imagine! You could help the little sparklings practice their flying and everything!"

"Oh, yes, I could teach them _everything_ I know!" Thundercracker replied, dragging out the word.

Ever since Starscream had gotten sparked and, as he got closer to the due date, everyone was talking about sparklings more and more, Skywarp had realized how much he wanted one of his own…but he couldn't, not without Moonbeam. When he watched Thundercracker and Gemstone discussing their family plans so freely, he felt his eyes slowly filling with tears.

Thundercracker expected Skywarp to be angry, and he was prepared to gloat…but when he looked at his brother, he was surprised to see that he looked hurt, not angry. It was hard to see from where they were, but Skywarp looked about to cry.

"Sweetie?" asked Gemstone, sounding confused. "What's the matter?"

"N-Nothing," said Thundercracker quietly. They continued to make out, as Skywarp bolted out of the room, determined to leave before the dam burst.

…

Skywarp was hoping Starscream wouldn't be in their room, because he just wanted to cry without anyone seeing him. Unfortunately, Starscream was there, eating more red energon and reading _Decepticon Weekly_. There were two pillows under his wings and one under his head, and he kept feverishly adjusting them every two seconds.

"Oh, hello, Skywarp," Starscream said calmly as Skywarp burst in. "Would you mind chopping my wings off for me?"

"Why?" asked Skywarp.

"Being sparked makes them hurt by default," Starscream replied, "and since I'm going to be grounded for the next three months of my life now, it's becoming basically unbearable. Plus I think these twins might be kicking each other as much as they're kicking me. What's up with you?"

Starscream had asked this casually, but when he looked over at Skywarp, he knew something was wrong.

"What are you looking at me like that for?" Skywarp demanded, his voice shaky.

"You're a wreck, that's why," Starscream said.

"No, I'm not," Skywarp mumbled. "I'm just a little tired."

"What happened, 'Warp?" Starscream asked sternly. "I can tell something isn't right."

"I made the mistake of asking Moonbeam about our family plans, again." Skywarp was trying to stay calm, but he was losing balance. "So she got mad and pushed me out of the room. Then, as if that wasn't bad _enough_, I saw that Thundercracker and Gemstone were talking about _their _future plans, and it was everything I wanted. Everything."

Starscream wanted to tell Skywarp that Gemstone was only Thundercracker's _fake_ girlfriend, and that he was only dating her to make everyone jealous, but then he decided it probably would do more harm than good. It could destroy the tiny, miniscule sense of friendship and brotherhood the two of them still kept for each other, and destroy it for good.

"I know she'll come around," Starscream insisted helplessly. "Maybe you two have to get to know each other a little bit better, that's all."

"I would even be the carrier myself, but I'd have to get spiked by someone first, and I'm not really into that," Skywarp continued.

"Trust me," said Starscream. "You do _not _want to be the carrier."

"If it meant I could have a little sparkling of my own, I would," Skywarp insisted, thinking of what it would be like to hold an impossibly tiny sparkling in his arms for the first time, and have it look up at him with its little red eyes, see it smile at him—and, without warning, he started to cry.

"Skywarp, please, please don't cry," said Starscream, wincing as he hoisted himself up and pulled Skywarp to sit next to him, but Skywarp just kept crying.

"I love Moonbeam so much," Skywarp sobbed, clinging to Starscream. "I want her to love me again too."

"Moonbeam _does _love you," Starscream whispered. "She just needs a little time to realize how much she needs you."

"No she doesn't." Skywarp wiped his eyes. "She deserves better than me and she knows it."

_Oh_, _if only I wasn_'_t about to have two sparklings_, Starscream thought to himself bitterly. _I would get that Moonbeam for hurting my brother_, _and give Thundercracker a good_-_talking to as well_.

"Skywarp, anyone would be lucky to have you!" Starscream kept on trying to console Skywarp, but it wasn't really working. If he didn't do something quickly, poor Skywarp was probably going to be hysterical. In fact, Starscream was beginning to feel a little hysterical himself.

"I-I just wanted to b-build her a perfect life, w-with a good f-family," Skywarp was insisting as he cried even harder. "I'm s-so sad. So, so sad."

"Listen, 'Warp, if you'll help me off this bed, I can go to the kitchen with you and we can get something to drink," said Starscream. "You can't stay here crying forever."

"I'm not thirsty," said Skywarp, wiping his eyes.

"Well, you need to go flying, at least," Starscream told him. "I can't go with you, but it will cheer you up."

"Okay, I guess." Skywarp shrugged and hopped off the bed; Starscream envied how mobile he was. Carrying twins was like having two giant water balloons shoved into your stomach, only a lot less comfortable. Starscream reached out his hand, and Skywarp pulled him off the bed.

"Now, you can come with me to the kitchen and we can refuel," Starscream was saying. "Then you can go flying outside. I guess I can sit there and watch you. Then you wouldn't have to be alone."

"Thanks," said Skywarp, and they walked into the kitchen—but they couldn't believe what they saw.

There, on the kitchen floor, Gemstone and Moonbeam were fighting each other mercilessly; it seriously looked like they were trying to kill each other. Thundercracker was gone; the femmes were the only ones there.

"What on Earth?" Skywarp cried. "Moonbeam, what do you think you're—"

Moonbeam screamed as Gemstone bit into her wings, _hard_. At the sound, Thundercracker came running in, too, and he seemed as shocked as his two brothers were.

"How dare you touch a Seeker's wings, you worthless whore!" Moonbeam screeched, clasping both hands around Gemstone's neck and squeezing.

"How dare you call me a whore, you stuck-up, sparkless witch!" Gemstone hollered back, managing to squeeze out of Moonbeam's clutches.

"It's funny…" said Moonbeam. "After I texted your name into my data pad, it autocorrected to 'disgusting slut'."

"I saw a piece of Ravage's scrap on the floor this morning," Gemstone retaliated. "It reminded me of you."

"Frag you," said Moonbeam. "And if you have any friends like you, you can go frag them too and earn some pocket change."

"Why don't you slip into something more comfortable…like a coma?"

"You make me wish I had more middle fingers!"

"Maybe you should eat makeup so you're pretty on the _inside_!"

"The smartest thing that ever came out of your mouth was a mech's spike!"

"You're so evil that when I kill you, they're not even going to let you into the Pit!" Gemstone shouted, and flipped Moonbeam over. Judging from Moonbeam's howl of pain, Gemstone could punch awfully hard.

"Wow, they're worse than you and Megatron," Thundercracker whispered to Starscream.

"All right, ladies, that's _enough_!" said Skywarp, but, in the confusion, he got kicked in the nuts and bolts by Moonbeam.

"You aren't really dumb enough to try and split up a catfight, are you, Skywarp?" Starscream asked, as the purple jet's feminine scream lingered in the air for a moment. "I mean, I can win any _dogfight_…but this is a whole other ball field."

"Actually, this is kind of…hot," said Thundercracker.

"H-Hot with pain?" croaked Skywarp. "Because I think that part of me was built to be treated nicer."

Gemstone seemed to be winning the fight. Taking advantage of Moonbeam's smaller size, she easily picked her opponent up by the wing and backhanded her right onto the floor again; Moonbeam introduced Gemstone's face to the bottom of her thruster.

"We should…we should really try to split them up, don't you think?" Skywarp mumbled, sinking down onto the floor and groaning in pain.

"Gemstone's obviously winning the fight," said Starscream, shrugging. "I say let her take out Moonbeam."

Gemstone, looking furious, lifted a screaming Moonbeam up, then slammed her onto the floor.

"Yeah, my money's _definitely_ on Gemstone," Thundercracker agreed.

"Listen, guys, I can't just sit here and watch my girlfriend get beat up by Thundercracker's girlfriend!" Skywarp insisted. "Do you realize how bizarre that sounds?"

"What is going _on _in here?!" they heard someone say as he burst into the room. "What is all this noise I hear?"

"Oh, Megatron, thank Primus!" said Skywarp. "Gemstone is beating up Moonbeam and I'm afraid she'll beat me up too if I try to stop her! You've got to do something!"

"Silence, fool," said Megatron and, to their surprise, he walked over to the two battling femmes (still trying to kill each other) and lifted them both up, one in each hand.

"Let me down!" shrieked Moonbeam. "I'm going to kill that whore!"

"Like you ever could, you freak!" Gemstone shouted back.

Megatron set them both onto the ground. Skywarp grabbed Moonbeam and Thundercracker grabbed Gemstone; they held them back until the two femmes were too exhausted to fight any more.

"I'm not fixing up those injuries I gave you," said Moonbeam.

"You're a lot worse off than I am," Gemstone snapped.

"Thundercracker, take Gemstone away," Megatron told the blue jet. "Starscream, Skywarp, Moonbeam, I don't care where you go, just stay away from the other two."

"Moonbeam, sweetie, what got into you?" Skywarp asked gently as he wrapped his arms around her. Her wings were bleeding heavily, and she had a deep scowl on her face. She was the loser of the fight, and it was clear she didn't like it.

"I hate that hooker Thundercracker brought home," Moonbeam mumbled. "And she hates me."

"Let's just head to the med bay and get you fixed up, okay, kissy-wissy?" Skywarp held Moonbeam's hand and led her out of the main monitor room and down the hall, Starscream following close behind.


	15. What Will Be, Will Be

**PLEASE NOTE: I do NOT own "Que Sera, Sera"! The song belongs to Doris Day.**

Everything was pretty much set now. Baby toys and supplies were purchased; the crib was set up; special energon for sparklings was mixed. Everyone was trying to sparkling-proof the base—no choking hazards could be on the ground, and nothing that was sharp or dangerous to eat.

Starscream, who had never been so continuously uncomfortable in his life, finally decided to let Skywarp sing to the little twins. Skywarp either massaged Starscream's aching wings or stroked the sparkling-bump that got a little bigger every day, and Starscream could just close his eyes and relax as he listened to Skywarp's singing:

_Now I have children of my own_

_They ask their daddy_: _What will I be_?

_Will I be handsome_, _will I be rich_?

_I tell them tenderly_:

_Que sera_, _sera_

_Whatever will be_, _will be_

_The future_'_s not ours to see_

_Que sera_, _sera_

"I love that song," Starscream whispered as he turned his head to the side, eyes closed. Right now he was propped up on pillows, as usual, and although he'd been achy as always, the singing and rest helped make him feel a little better. "Where have I heard it before?"

"Remember? It was the song our mother always sang to us when we were hurt or upset," Skywarp replied gently. "Now you can sing it to _your_ sparklings. Or, I can, at least."

"Oh yes, that's right," Starscream whispered. Very vaguely, he remembered himself and his two brothers as little sparklings, all crammed into one crib; he remembered the way his mother would rock them back and forth every night until they drifted into stasis; and yes, that was the song that Starscream loved her to sing to him. That was what Starscream remembered most, the beauty that was family.

…

It was well past midnight, and Thundercracker was still wide awake. Skywarp and Moonbeam were maintaining their now-shaky relationship, so they were still sleeping in the same room together. Starscream was in a fitful stasis; he wasn't allowed to lie on his front, and his back was painful too.

All day long, Thundercracker had been feeling so many things, and none of them did he understand. Part of him wondered what it would be like if Skywarp and Moonbeam split up, and she could be Thundercracker's girlfriend…but could he do that to Skywarp?

Sure. Why not? Moonbeam was public property. Skywarp didn't _own _her.

Thundercracker thought of the fight Moonbeam had with Gemstone about a month ago. That fight had turned him on immensely. For the whole rest of the day he'd been so pressurized he could hardly stand it; finally he convinced Gemstone to have a little fun with him that night to get rid of all that stress.

Watching femmes fight always turned Thundercracker on. Simply put, he liked tough femmes who fought hard when they needed to, like Gemstone did. Moonbeam hadn't even stood a chance against her.

"Oh, slag, not again…" Thundercracker whispered. There it was again, pressurization. Why? It was weird; Thundercracker hadn't had Moonbeam on his mind this time. Really, he didn't know what was on his mind. Something was making his spark beat faster. _Something_. Thundercracker didn't know what it was or where it came from, but he was suddenly feeling very frisky.

Thundercracker didn't want just anyone. Moonbeam had been living with them for a very long time now, almost a year, and she still hadn't shown any sign of interest in him. Was he letting her slip through his fingers? Was it not meant to be between her and Skywarp?

_I should probably go get Gemstone_, Thundercracker thought. _Maybe she can help me forget about my beloved Moonbeam again_…

Thundercracker quietly slipped out of bed, making sure not to wake up Starscream, and made his way to the med bay, where Gemstone slept at night. When he walked in, there she was, sleeping. Her pearly white paint job was reflecting the moonlight, making it shine. There was a peaceful smile on her face as she slept on her side, clinging to the sheets. She didn't look like a hooker; she looked beautiful.

As he walked over to the repair table where Gemstone slept, Thundercracker felt his spark beating faster again.

"My precious Gemstone," Thundercracker whispered, stroking her head. She stirred in her sleep, but didn't open her eyes.

Thundercracker just sat there for a moment, watching Gemstone sleep. For some reason he liked it here. She was good in bed, but they weren't even _doing _anything right now and yet he still couldn't stop looking at her. It was confusing. So confusing.

With a heavy spark, Thundercracker kissed Gemstone on top of her head, stood up, and left the room.

…

Skywarp was interacting with Starscream's sparklings again. Later that day, Starscream had another appointment with Moonbeam, to make sure everything was fine. These appointments had to be more frequent, since the twins were pretty much here. Starscream let out a contended sigh as he heard Skywarp reach the second verse:

_When I grew up and fell in love_

_I asked my sweetheart_: _What lies ahead_?

_Will we have rainbows_, _day after_—

That was when Skywarp's voice broke, and he made a little whimpering noise. Starscream sat up (not without some difficulty) and looked at the purple jet; he was obviously trying to stop tears that were running down his face anyway.

"What happened?" asked Starscream. "Skywarp?"

"Don't worry about it," Skywarp insisted. "Just relax, friend."

"Well, I can't _now_, can I?" said Starscream. "Now I want to know what's gotten you so upset."

"I couldn't sing the 'rainbows day after day' part." Skywarp wiped his eyes and sniffed. "Moonbeam and I _used _to have rainbows day after day. Now we don't."

"Did she dump you?"

"Sort of," said Skywarp shakily. "Today I tried to give her a kiss, and she told me she needed a relationship 'break'. Whatever the slag _that _means."

"Oh," Starscream whispered. "That's harsh."

"I don't even know what she wants from me any more," Skywarp mumbled. "Sometimes she likes me, sometimes she doesn't. It's impossible for me to really know how she feels. Femmes are a mystery."

"That they are, Skywarp," said Starscream quietly. "That they are."

With that, Starscream sat up all the way, took Skywarp into his arms, and finished the rest of the song:

_Que sera_, _sera_

_Whatever will be_, _will be_

_The future_'_s not ours to see_

_Que sera_, _sera_

_What will be_, _will be_

_Que sera_, _sera_

**LATER THAT DAY…**

This was the first appointment with Moonbeam that Skywarp felt he couldn't go to, although he had teleported Starscream there. Starscream understood why he didn't want to see his "girlfriend" right now—if she could even be called such.

"Thanks for the teleportation, Skywarp," said Starscream gratefully. "Walking around is a pain in the aft for me."

"I'll be waiting outside for you," Skywarp said back. "Make sure you tell me everything, okay?"

"Okay," Starscream promised him, and went inside the med bay.

"Wow, you look just about to pop, don't you?" said Moonbeam snidely. "Get up on the repair table."

"What are you going to do today?" asked Starscream.

"Be quiet," said Moonbeam, carefully lifting up Starscream's cockpit. "First I have to make sure their sparks are beating regularly."

It was a very uncomfortable feeling for Starscream, to have his spark squeezed. Even if Moonbeam was a good medic, it still felt kind of awkward, especially because the two of them hadn't ever really hit it off.

"So…how are the sparklings doing?" Starscream asked.

"Their spark-beats are fine," Moonbeam replied, and shut Starscream's cockpit. "Can you still feel them kicking you?"

"That's an _understatement_," said Starscream.

"You don't have any dizziness or anything?" Moonbeam asked. "Any other symptoms you've been having?"

"Nothing more than usual." Starscream shrugged. "Do you have any advice?"

"Pay attention to what your body tells you," Moonbeam told him. "And if you get any suspicious sort of pain, especially around the chest, come to me immediately, okay? For all you know it might be the sparklings."

"I feel a lot of pain," said Starscream.

"Well…sometimes these pains are just preparing you," Moonbeam was telling him. "Either way, though, make sure you stay in touch with me."

"Noted," said Starscream. Moonbeam sounded so colloquial, so happy. Didn't she _know_ she was continuing to hurt Skywarp, who still wouldn't let go of her? Didn't she _know _she was playing hot-and-cold with him? Or _did _she know it, and just not care?

"What are you looking at me like that for?" Moonbeam demanded.

"Look, Moonbeam, I really appreciate you doing this for the sparklings and all, but…" Starscream sighed. "Do you _have _to be this way with Skywarp? He's hurt and confused out of his mind about what you want from him."

"I don't _want _anything from him," Moonbeam snapped. "I've just been in this relationship for awhile, and…I guess I need some fresh air."

"That's kind of insensitive," said Starscream indignantly.

"Well, that's how I feel," Moonbeam told him. "And there's nothing you can do to change that."

"You know, Moonbeam, I know you think you're better than everyone else," Starscream told her, feeling angry. "But you're _not_. I don't appreciate how you're treating my brother _or _your high-and-mighty attitude."

"Big deal," she said back. "What are you gonna do about it, huh? You don't know anything about anything."

"I'll be the judge of that." Starscream glared at her. "I challenge you to a dogfight."

"You can't do that," Moonbeam taunted. "You're grounded for the next two months, remember?"

"Fine, then, as soon as I can, we'll have a dogfight outside," Starscream snapped.

"You're on!" Moonbeam shouted.

"May the best Seeker win," said Starscream calmly. "And I think we both know who _that _is."

**TO BE CONTINUED…**


	16. The Kiss

**DEAR READERS: Sorry about the long wait…I had a very busy weekend. Now the chapter is up, though, so once again read, review, and enjoy! **

**WARNING: Graphic situations ahead! Read at your own risk!**

"All right now, there's some stuff you need to know," Moonbeam was saying. Starscream, Skywarp, Thundercracker, Megatron and even Gemstone were sitting in the med bay, attending another one of Starscream's sparkling checkups.

"Like what?" asked Megatron. Of course, Megatron seemed inherently interested, because this was _his _CNA they were talking about, after all.

"Well…during the whole process of being sparked up, the sparkling clings to and feeds off of the carrier's spark, in the chestplate area," Moonbeam explained. "Once it's fully grown, it detaches itself within a matter of hours and exits the body through the interface panel—the port-and-valve region, I _should _say."

"Hours?" said Starscream. "Like how many hours?"

"Could be anywhere from six to sixteen." Moonbeam shrugged. "There's not really an answer to that question, officially. Anyway, remember that when the sparklings arrive you'll feel pain in your chest while they detach themselves and then pain all over your body. I'll have to closely monitor all three of you, too, and if everything goes fine, you'll be back to your old self within a week."

"Don't worry, Starscream, you still have a month to dread this," said Thundercracker, laughing and putting his arm around Gemstone almost involuntarily. He had been staring at her more and more often; their fake relationship was very convincing.

Meanwhile, Skywarp was glancing at Moonbeam every so often, but whenever he thought she might be looking at him, his cheeks turned red and he turned away. Starscream knew he missed hearing her call him "sugar daddy" and he was still yearning for those kisses he'd treasured so much. Since Moonbeam had extended this "relationship break" for over a month now, Skywarp had moved back into the old room he shared with his two brothers. Everyone could tell his spark was broken…and Moonbeam didn't even seem to care.

"So, anyway, your sparklings are doing well for now, and everything should turn out fine," said Moonbeam. "Get lots of rest and take care of yourself."

"Okay, thanks, Moonbeam," said Starscream a little shakily, Skywarp helped him up, and they all left the room—but then Skywarp turned back.

"I've got to talk to her," he whispered. "This has gone on for too long. I want her back."

"So go talk to her," said Starscream. Skywarp nodded and dashed back into the med bay.

"Skywarp?" Moonbeam sounded surprised. "What are you doing here?"

"I love you, Moonbeam!" Skywarp cried out. "I need you in my life. Special femmes like you just don't come around every day!"

"Skywarp…" Moonbeam closed her eyes and turned her head away. "I just don't—"

To be sure, he had been planning on exerting some dignity, but when Skywarp heard the sound of his lover's voice about to tell him no for good, he dropped to his knees and stared up at her, tears flowing out of his eyes.

"Please take me back, Moonbeam," he begged. "_Please_. I'll do everything in my power to make it up to you, I really will. Just give me another chance! End the break! Sew the seams! Stitch the hems! Oh, Moonbeam, my goddess, I would give away my spark to hold you once again—and never let our love end."

"Now _that_'_s _the way to grovel," said Moonbeam, and a sinister smile spread across her face. "All right, Skywarp, I'll have you back…but we must do something _really _special. And by that I do NOT mean interfacing—we have to go somewhere fancy and nice."

"Anything your lovely spark desires, my queen," Skywarp told her, then lifted her up in the air. "I love you so much."

…

"What are you doing later tonight, Gemstone?" Thundercracker asked her as they meandered out of the med bay and into the main monitor room.

"Why, did _you _have something special in mind, TC?" Gemstone's flirtatious smirk left no doubt as to what she was hinting at.

"No, I mean…" Thundercracker shrugged. "Why don't we just go somewhere nice? After all, if you're my 'girlfriend', I should at least be acting like a good 'boyfriend'."

"I thought you just were in this for the 'facing, Thundercracker." Gemstone shrugged and smiled. "I guess there really is more to you than meets the eye."

Before he even had a chance to think, Thundercracker found himself grabbing Gemstone and dragging them both onto the couch. Within seconds, they had begun a very steamy make-out session. It wasn't necessarily involving conscious thought; the savage animal instincts inside of him were just telling him: _Spike her_—_and spike her now_.

"You know, we're all alone in here, hon," Thundercracker reminded her huskily.

"I am aware of that," said Gemstone, grinning and running her hands up and down Thundercracker's wings. "Do you need a good frag, TC?"

"Yes!" Thundercracker cried. "No one does it like you, Gemstone!"

"Thank you, Thundercracker," Gemstone whispered, and started trailing her pearly-white fingers down Thundercracker's body until she got in between his thighs. Without any shyness at all she pushed his legs apart, flipped open his interface hatch and sucked on his erect spike, causing him to let out a cry of shock and pleasure.

Not long after, the stimulation caused Thundercracker to release inside her mouth. Slightly concerned, he looked up at her; she really had just swallowed it and shrugged it off. Thundercracker had learned that being a hooker wasn't Gemstone's occupation of choice, but she sure was good.

Gemstone jumped on top of Thundercracker and straddled him, staring right up into his eyes. It was true; Gemstone really _was_ beautiful. Maybe she was a little rough around the edges, but then again, gems don't always shine at first.

While he was waiting to get pressurized again, Thundercracker grabbed her and pulled her up so that they were face-level; then he pressed his lips against hers, initiating a passionate kiss. As they continued this, he snaked one hand down her body, holding her shoulders with the other. When he found her interface panel he flicked it open and stuck his fingers in, getting even more pleasure from the satisfied moans she gave him.

"Oh, Thundercracker, baby…just keep doing what you're doing…"

"I'll do anything you want, hon," Thundercracker reassured her. "But do you have to be so sexy?"

Gemstone giggled and grabbed Thundercracker's even-harder-than-before spike, shoving it right into her valve. She smirked at his look of surprise, and started her hard thrusting.

"Faster, hon," Thundercracker kept crying out. "Faster!"

Gemstone did as she was told. Thundercracker was determined to overload at the same time as she did—that was just the best way—but he feared he was going to overload a lot sooner than that. Gemstone was just too good…and too hot.

"You're gonna come for me, Thundercracker," Gemstone purred, still going fast. Thundercracker groaned and thrust his hips upwards, plunging himself in deeper. Yes, it was going to happen, it was getting faster and faster, hotter and hotter, so, so good—

Thundercracker cried out again as his second overload hit, the sticky, off-white transfluid spilling into Gemstone shamelessly. At the same time he felt her moan at the sensation, and he knew her overload had come as well.

"Oh, you're soaking, hon," Thundercracker mumbled, turning over and accidentally falling onto the floor.

…

Megatron was walking down the hall to the Seekers' room. After Starscream's appointment with Moonbeam, he had been compelled to check on how the little twins were doing. When he reached the door, he found that it was locked. That was strange, but it wasn't a problem; he simply overrode the code and let himself in.

"Starscream?" Megatron asked.

Jumping in surprise at the sound, Starscream glanced at Megatron, then turned away again and continued his sulking.

"What do_ you _want?" Starscream mumbled.

"I just wanted to see how my CNA was doing," said Megatron, coming to sit next to Starscream.

"Stop calling them that, I said!" Starscream shouted.

"What's wrong with you?" Megatron snapped.

"Leave me alone, Megatron," said Starscream. "I don't want to be talking to anyone."

"You're scared about the sparklings, aren't you?" Megatron looked suspicious.

"Of course I'm not _scared_," Starscream told him, but Megatron could see that he was lying. "I'm just…just tired, that's all. Having two almost-fully-grown sparklings in me wipes me out. I haven't felt like my old self in quite some time now."

"You will in a month," Megatron reminded him. "You cannot break this bond the twins have created with you, Starscream."

"What if something goes wrong?" Starscream definitely sounded worried now. "What if one of the sparklings _dies_? Or both? Or what if I die?"

"Moonbeam is a good medic," Megatron told him. "I think that result can be prevented."

"But she _hates _me," Starscream whined.

"Do you honestly think," Megatron asked scornfully, "that any hatred she has towards you will deliberately keep her from delivering the sparklings safely?"

"I-I guess not." Starscream stared down at the floor. "It's just…I hate the feeling of not being able to control what's going to happen."

"You can't control how the birth process is going to go, but you can control how you're going to deal with it," said Megatron. "Think about that."

"How I'm going to deal with it?" asked Starscream, feeling his eyes tearing up again. "You mean, completely freak out?"

"Well, that seems about the worst thing you can do," said Megatron, grabbing Starscream and pulling him closer.

"I can't do this with you right now." Starscream sniffed. "The sparklings get in the way."

"Will they get in the way of this?" Megatron asked, much more tenderly than usual. Taking Starscream's chin in his hands, he drew his lover even closer and planted a soft, quick kiss on his lips.

Starscream was shocked; it was the first time Megatron had ever done anything sexual to him before without completely robbing him of his dignity. The kiss was respectful, almost sweet, inviting Starscream to try again.

"No," Starscream whispered. "They won't."

With that, Starscream wrapped his arms around Megatron's neck and continued the kiss, a long, loving kiss that they both wished would last forever.


	17. Legacy

**ONE WEEK LATER…**

It started out as a simple, almost gentle tugging feeling, but then it became harder, more painful, like a twig about to snap. Over the course of only an hour it turned from a soft pulling sensation to waves of searing pain, getting more unbearable by the minute. Starscream didn't realize he'd been screaming in his sleep until he felt Thundercracker shaking him awake.

"Starscream, wake up!" he cried frantically. "What happened? Is everything okay?"

Unable to speak, Starscream just shook his head _no_. Absolutely not.

"What's wrong?" Thundercracker demanded. "What hurts?"

The pain was getting so bad that Starscream's vision was blurring and he couldn't even think clearly, but he gestured to his cockpit, squeezed his eyes tighter shut, then collapsed back down.

"Oh, scrap," said Thundercracker. "Here, hold on, I'll call Moonbeam. I've got her frequency on my com. link."

It was only around 3:45 in the morning. The sun hadn't even risen, and everything was pitch black. Starscream hadn't been in this much pain since his incident with the exploding energon cube, so long ago now. How could anything hurt more than that? Not to mention that he had no clue _what _was going on.

Starscream grabbed Thundercracker's hand as he waited for the line to pick up. To be sure, he never thought he'd want Moonbeam near him, but now a good medic was _all _he wanted.

"What is it, Thundercracker?" Moonbeam sounded bored.

"I think the little twins are here early," Thundercracker told her, trying to keep his voice steady.

"WHAT?!" Starscream shouted, but Moonbeam didn't lose her cool.

"Understood," she told him seriously. "Just try to keep him calm, and Skywarp and I will be there shortly. Moonbeam out."

"How—how is this possible?" Starscream gasped, feeling his chest burn with pain again. "They weren't supposed to be here for another month!"

"What do you want me to do, _ask _them?" said Thundercracker.

"Cut it out!" Starscream put both hands over his cockpit. "Do you two _hate _me?!"

"Stop that," Thundercracker told him, and gently pushed him back down. "Just relax and go to your happy place."

"My _what_?" said Starscream.

"I heard somebody say it on TV," Thundercracker explained.

"Guess what?" Starscream whined. "I don't _have _a happy place."

"Well, think of one." Thundercracker shrugged.

Starscream was trying to block the torturous pain from his CPU, wondering what his happy place should be, when Moonbeam and Skywarp teleported into the room.

"Sorry about that." Moonbeam, looking irritated, pointed to the half-awake Skywarp. "This joker is a pretty heavy sleeper."

"How come you're so awake?" Thundercracker asked.

"I'm a _medic _bot, moron," she snapped. "I'm used to getting calls at any time of the day."

"Fine, but why are the sparklings here now?" Thundercracker continued.

"Sparklings come when they come," Moonbeam replied. "And besides, early birth is actually pretty common for multiples."

"Well, you could have told me that earlier!" Starscream cried.

Moonbeam rolled her eyes then sat down on the bed, holding his hand. "Just calm down, okay? This is all perfectly normal."

"Can you awaken Skywarp?" Thundercracker asked, poking the purple jet. "He looks like he's sleeping standing up."

"Yes, he needs to get us to the med bay." Moonbeam got up and pinched Skywarp's wings. "And you need to go get Megatron."

"Why should I?" asked Thundercracker, as Skywarp jerked awake.

"Well, he made it clear to me that he wanted to be there when his CNA came into the world," said Moonbeam.

"I told him to stop calling them that!" Starscream informed them. "They're my sparklings too, y'know!"

"Yes, I'm very well aware of that," said Moonbeam. "Thundercracker, you go get the boss, then meet us in the med bay. Skywarp, teleport Starscream to the med bay and I'll be there shortly."

Skywarp nodded drowsily, grabbed Starscream's arm, and they both disappeared. Thundercracker left too, and Moonbeam walked down the hall to the med bay.

When she got there, Skywarp was trying to wake up Gemstone, who was still curled up on the repair table. Starscream was clinging to Skywarp and groaning a little, and Skywarp was having a hard time keeping him on his feet.

"What's that slut doing here?" Moonbeam pointed angrily at Gemstone.

"Gemstone sleeps here, remember?" said Skywarp. "There's no room for her anywhere else."

"Well, get her off the repair table!" said Moonbeam.

Skywarp picked Gemstone up and set her on the ground, leaving her to sleep there in peace. Then he set Starscream down.

"What the slag is h-happening?" Starscream mumbled.

"Just what I told you," Moonbeam replied. "It's your spark itself that's hurting, because two sparklings that used to be attached to it are trying to pull themselves free. I can't imagine that's a pleasant feeling."

"No, it's not," Starscream told her, clinging helplessly to the sheets. "What should I do now?"

"Your job right now is just to relax and let this pain pass," Moonbeam told them. "I know it's hard, but…that's really all you can do for now."

"Send the sparklings your love," Skywarp added.

Starscream was trying to send the sparklings his love (even though he wasn't quite sure how), and Moonbeam kept monitoring the health of both carrier and offspring, just to make sure everything was still going fine. That was when Thundercracker, followed by Megatron, walked into the room.

"What's going on?" Megatron demanded. "Starscream, are you all right?"

"Oh, yes, thank you for asking," said Starscream bitterly. "I'm having the time of my—OH, FOR THE LOVE OF UNICRON!"

"Well, I'm sorry, Starscream," Moonbeam told him matter-of-factly, "but I'm afraid there's not much I can do. The sparklings are just doing what they're supposed to be doing."

"What? Torturing me?"

"_No_," said Moonbeam, obviously trying to keep her patience with him. "Separating their sparks from your own."

"You're the medic, Moonbeam," Starscream whined. "Can't you do _something_?"

"This is a painful process!" Moonbeam snapped. "Get used to it!"

Starscream cried out again as he felt the first bond snap away. It must have been a little loud, because that was when Gemstone woke up.

"Where am I?" she mumbled, rubbing her head.

"Gemstone, you're awake," said Thundercracker, walking over to her and hoisting her up.

"M-Morning already?" Gemstone yawned and rubbed her eyes.

"Well, technically, yes," Thundercracker told her. "It's about 4 in the morning, maybe 4:15."

"What's going on?" Gemstone asked. "Why are we all up so early?"

"I don't think I can put this lightly," said Thundercracker, "but Starscream's twins are ready to be born, and you were on the repair table when we brought him here."

"Wow, really?!" Gemstone ran over to the repair table. "Oh, this is so great!"

"It's NOT great!" Starscream told her. "It's horrible!"

"You're halfway there," Moonbeam said. "One of the sparklings has already detached itself. Now you've only got one more."

"And it seems to be putting up quite a fight," Starscream moaned. "How could it get _any _worse than this?!"

**MANY HOURS OF HORRIBLE LABOR LATER…**

Starscream let out yet another involuntary wail. It was well past noon, and things really _had_ gotten worse. Of course, now both bonds had snapped, but actually getting the little devils out was another matter. It would have been a lot easier for Starscream to concentrate on pushing two whole sparklings out of his body if it didn't feel like somebody was stabbing their exit point with a steak knife.

"I hope I've made clear my demand that they both be mechs," Megatron was telling everyone.

"They'd better both be femmes, you jerk," said Gemstone, scowling at him.

"I DON'T CARE!" Starscream screamed. "JUST GET THEM _OUT_!"

"The birth process is beautiful, Starscream," said Skywarp, but Starscream just swatted blindly at his brother because the little twins' creation day sure didn't feel beautiful. Every stretch, pull and tear was apparent and the only thought on Starscream's mind was that he was going to die, and—well, actually, dying didn't sound so bad right now. Once again, all he could really do was cry out in pain.

"Deep breath, then _push_!" Moonbeam shouted. "I want to see those sparklings!"

"I can't do this!" Starscream howled, digging his fingers into the cold metal of the repair table.

"You're doing fine," Skywarp told him, a little helplessly. "Just…just try to be brave."

"For a coward like _him_? Impossible," said Megatron, and that was when Starscream tried to actually hit him, but Moonbeam pushed him back.

"What are you doing?" she demanded. "Don't pay attention to your fellow morons! You're giving birth to twins!"

"Is there supposed to be so much raw energon?" Skywarp asked. "Because, I mean, that's kinda—"

"What? I'm _bleeding_ now?!" they heard Starscream say.

"Just the normal amount, that's all," Moonbeam reassured him. "Honey, don't _worry_. I've done this plenty of times before."

And so it went on for hours, with Thundercracker holding Starscream's hand and Skywarp trying to help Moonbeam deliver the little sparklings. Gemstone looked fascinated, clinging to Thundercracker's arm as she stroked Starscream's helmet.

"Come on, you can do it!" she was telling him enthusiastically. "Those two little miracles will be in your arms before you know it!"

"PUSH!" Megatron hollered, violently banging one fist on Starscream's knee.

"It's like trying to squeeze all of Cybertron through the eye of a needle!" Starscream cried as another wave of sparkling pain passed.

"It's tough," said Moonbeam, "but you have to do it."

…

Megatron was holding the screaming Twin One, who looked _exactly _like a miniature, much younger version of him without the weapons, while Twin Two was still on his way. Starscream, the carrier, seemed about to black out, but everyone else was offering their encouragement, and Moonbeam was gently guiding the second sparkling out, trying to keep everything under control. It was true: her dislike for Starscream and generally negative attitude didn't stop her from doing her job.

"What the—OW!" yelled Thundercracker. Starscream, unwittingly, had just torn his arm off.

Gemstone giggled. "Looks like you're going to have to get a replacement arm, now, aren't you, Thundercracker?"

"I didn't know Starscream was that strong," said Thundercracker, rubbing the socket where his arm had been; the wires were still sparking.

"Well, he is now." Gemstone shrugged.

"When is this going to end?!" Starscream whined, clinging to Thundercracker's dismembered arm.

"Don't be afraid," Moonbeam reassured him. "You'll make it. The second twin takes much less time than the first."

And only a few minutes later, Starscream had fallen back onto the repair table in relief, Twin Two was here, and it was over.

"Oh, wow," Skywarp whispered.

"What? What happened?" Starscream frantically put his knees down and tried to sit up, but fell backwards onto the bed. "Is something wrong with him?"

"No," said Skywarp. Moonbeam handed him the sparkling, and he set it in Starscream's hands, tears in his eyes. "He looks just like you."

Starscream stared down at the impossibly tiny sparkling, a shocked expression on his face. Twin Number Two did look exactly like his carrier, from his wings to his black helmet to his bright blue forearms. He was crying, a lot, his little blue hands balled into fists. His wingspan was probably only a foot or two long, and he was even smaller than Rumble or Frenzy.

"Oh, he's so beautiful, Starscream," Gemstone whispered.

"Couldn't I hold the first one too?" Starscream asked.

Megatron handed over the other sparkling, who was no less perfect, and Starscream held both of them, one in each hand. The look of wonder and amazement on his face didn't go away—he couldn't believe they were actually here.

"You forgot something important," said Moonbeam. "They need designations."

Megatron took both twins from Starscream, and held them up. "They shall be named Megatronus I and Megatronus II, in order to carry on my legacy."

"Why should they be named after you?" Starscream demanded. "They should both be named after _me_, Starscream."

"Do you guys _ever _stop fighting?" Moonbeam sounded exasperated. "Just name one Megatron Jr., and the other Starscream Jr."

"Well, yeah, only that's too long," said Gemstone. "The first one should be named Megs, and the second one should be named Stars."

"Actually, that's kind of cute," said Thundercracker.

"Stars and Megs it is, then." Starscream smiled. "I like it."

"Um, Starscream?" Skywarp stammered. "Is it okay if I…y'know…?"

"Of course," said Starscream. Skywarp reached out one hand and Starscream let him hold Stars.

"Welcome to our world, Stars," he said, holding the sparkling close, his voice a little choked up. "I-I'm your Uncle Skywarp. You and your brother are even better than I thought you would be. I will _always _be here to sparkling-sit."

Starscream let Thundercracker and Gemstone hold Megs. Thundercracker held Megs in his palm (using the one arm he had left), and Gemstone kissed his little helmet. Then both of the sparklings were handed back to their carrier. By now, they had drifted into peaceful stasis.

When he got them back, Starscream put both Megs and Stars in one hand and held them close, so they could feel his spark beating again and know that he was still there—and always would be. For the past eleven months, they had felt and been comforted by his sparkbeat every day, and it was where they felt safest. The bond hadn't broken at all. Stars reached out both his tiny blue arms and latched onto Starscream's thumb, his wings twitching a little in his sleep.

"That was the worst eleven hours of my life," said Starscream, hugging both adorable twins. "But this is the best day of my life."

As the Command Trine and Gemstone fussed over Stars and Megs, Moonbeam went back to stand with Megatron, who was watching, arms crossed, a serious look on his face.

"They're your sons too, y'know." Moonbeam smirked. "I think you can reveal some sentiment for once. Besides, didn't you want to be involved in their lives?"

"I don't have 'sentiment'," Megatron told her. "However, I am pleased to see that my offspring arrived safely…although not without some difficulty on the carrier's part."

"As you know, I'm a general practitioner," said Moonbeam. "But delivering sparklings has always been my favorite job."

"Why is that?" Megatron asked her.

"Well, it's the only time I'm helping a patient with something good and natural," Moonbeam replied. "And then, when I let the carrier hold the sparkling for the first time? I can see love, amazement, disbelief, all in one glance. It's priceless."

**TO BE CONTINUED…**


	18. Dogfight

The little twins lived in the Seekers' room, so they didn't give Starscream or Thundercracker much rest at night. They apparently preferred to feed at random intervals throughout the night, and if they weren't sucking on a bottle of wholesome sparkling energon, they were screaming about _something_. It was like living with a couple of tiny howler monkeys.

"Attention, Starscream," Thundercracker grouched. "The Terrible Two wants you again."

"They didn't let me sleep at night BEFORE they were born…" Starscream dragged himself out of bed and walked over to the sparklings' crib. "Now it's even worse. You take Megs, I'll take Stars, okay?"

"Last time I fed Megs, he threw up all over me!" Thundercracker complained.

"Well, that sounds like your problem, Thundercracker." Starscream sat down on the bed and filled a bottle with energon for baby Stars, then tossed a bottle to Thundercracker. "Give Megs his nourishment. I command you."

"Why do _we_ always have to do everything?" said Thundercracker. "Skywarp just gets to be with Moonbeam every night, so he doesn't have to worry."

"Skywarp cares a lot about his nephews," Starscream told him. "And you know what I'm mad about? Megatron isn't helping me at _all _with these little monsters. I have to wait for them to feed at the table every morning, trying to keep my eyes open, while he just sits there sipping on a cube of high-grade, reading the newspaper app on his data pad. Can you believe it?"

"Yes," said Thundercracker.

"Well, I'm tired of—hey!" Starscream yelped as Stars did a loud squeal and kicked the bottle onto the floor, then started screaming. Hearing his brother's wails, Megs chimed in, and soon both of the sparklings were crying again.

"What do you two _want _from us?!" Thundercracker demanded, trying to get Megs to shut up, but he wouldn't. Then, they heard a familiar voice—

"Do you two need some help?" Skywarp was smiling as he opened the door and walked inside.

"Skywarp!" Starscream and Thundercracker cried at the same time.

"Thank Primus you're here," Starscream said. "They've just been screaming and screaming. I don't know what to do."

"Did you try singing to them?" Skywarp asked.

"Oh, it just makes me feel so silly," Starscream told him. "I don't think I'm the type to sing a lot, actually."

"Well, it's worth a try," said Skywarp. "Thundercracker, bring Megs over here."

An exhausted-looking Thundercracker brought the older twin over and handed him to Starscream.

"Hold them close, so they can feel your spark beating," Skywarp told him. Starscream nodded and held the little twins to his spark chamber, while Skywarp started his singing again:

_When I was just a little boy_

_I asked my mother_, _what will I be_?

_Will I be handsome_, _will I be rich_?

_Here_'_s what she said to me_:

_Que sera_, _sera_

_Whatever will be_, _will be_

_The future_'_s not ours to see_

_Que sera_, _sera_

Skywarp kept singing, while Starscream and Thundercracker gently gave the sparklings their bottles back. Once they'd consumed all the nourishment and drifted into stasis, Starscream got up and set them in their crib, one by one, and kissed them goodnight.

"How do you do that?" Starscream whispered, walking back to his brothers.

Skywarp shrugged and smiled. "I guess I just must be a natural."

**ONE WEEK LATER…**

Starscream walked into the med bay, glad to finally catch Moonbeam alone, without Skywarp clinging to her side. Megs was resting in his hand and Stars, as he had taken to doing lately, was hovering in the air, making little squealing noises. Stars didn't even know how to roll over yet, but his Seeker instincts had already kicked in.

"What do you want now, Starscream?" Moonbeam asked. The tone of her voice made it clear that she didn't want to waste her time on him.

"I believe I have promised you something," Starscream replied. "Do you remember?"

"You couldn't keep a promise for scrap," Moonbeam sassed. "What could you possibly be referring to?"

Starscream grinned. "I challenged you to a dogfight."

"Your arrogance is showing, Screamer," Moonbeam said flatly.

"So you're throwing in the towel?" Starscream taunted. "I knew you'd see reason."

"I'm one of the Seekers, too, y'know," Moonbeam told him angrily. "So you know what? I'll accept your little challenge—and I am going to win."

"You're going to eat those words, Moonbeam," said Starscream. "Flying is what I'm good at."

"Let's go, then, big-shot," Moonbeam said sarcastically. "You, me, outside—right now!"

"Works for me," Starscream replied, walking out of the med bay, Moonbeam angrily following behind.

When they got to the main monitor room, Skywarp looked up, noticed the look on Moonbeam's face, and asked, "What's wrong?"

"Nothing's wrong, sugar daddy," Moonbeam said stonily. "Starscream just challenged me to a dogfight, and I've accepted his challenge."

"No bets refused," said Starscream.

"My money's on Starscream," Thundercracker blurted out.

"Oh yeah?" Skywarp stuck his nose in the air. "_My _money's on Moonbeam."

Of course, if he hadn't been in love with Moonbeam, Skywarp definitely would have bet on Starscream…but his love for her overrode anything else.

"This should be interesting to see," said Megatron, setting his data pad down. "I'm not placing any bets, though."

That was when Gemstone walked into the room, holding a cube of energon, a smile on her face. "Hey everyone, what's up?"

"Starscream challenged Moonbeam to a dogfight," Thundercracker told her, walking over and putting his arm around her. "No bets refused."

"I've never seen a dogfight before!" Gemstone looked excited as she followed Megatron and the four jets outside. "Can I watch?"

"No way, you whore," Moonbeam snapped, scowling. "_You_'_re_ not a Seeker, are you? What's your vehicle mode?"

"That is no business of yours." Gemstone crossed her arms and turned away.

"You're probably something stupid, like a data pad or something," Moonbeam taunted. "Maybe Megatron and Soundwave can watch, but why should I let a filthy little hooker watch too?"

"Now, Moonbeam," Thundercracker said gently, resting one hand upon Moonbeam's shoulder. "Just because Gemstone doesn't have any Seeker CNA doesn't make her any less of a Decepticon. Let her watch."

"Why _don_'_t _you want her to watch?" Starscream chimed in. "Are you afraid your enemy will see you fail?"

"All right, I'll let the little piece of trash watch!" Moonbeam shouted.

"Remember, though, this is WITHOUT weapons," Skywarp reminded them. "I don't want anyone getting hurt, understand?"

"Fine, fine," said Starscream.

"Contestants," said Megatron. "Take to the skies!"

Starscream and Moonbeam both turned to jet mode and soared into the sky.

This was the first time Starscream had been able to fly since the twins had been born, due to their taking up all of his time. That, added to the fact that he hadn't been able to fly the last two months he'd been carrying them, was only helping him win. Flying was coming naturally again, and it felt great to have all that extra weight gone.

Moonbeam was right on Starscream's tail, so he fired up his thrusters and increased speed, leaving her to choke on his exhaust fumes. Obviously steaming with anger, she sped up too and bumped his wing, trying to throw him off course.

Starscream just did a barrel roll and went out of her way, then reached a higher cruising altitude, doing a few extra curlicues as a taunt. Moonbeam shot straight up in the air and rammed Starscream from behind; taking it as a challenge, he rammed her too. The dogfight was getting rougher by the minute, and Starscream was ecstatic. The sky was his home, and he loved a nasty fight.

And so the dogfight went on, with Starscream and Moonbeam trying to outdo each other, showing off every move they knew. Starscream, of course, was winning, with Moonbeam falling further and further behind. It was clear that she was angry and frustrated, unable to keep up with her opponent. All the Decepticons had gathered outside to watch, and they were cheering every time someone got bumped, scratched, or outdone.

Finally, though, the dogfight had to end. When Starscream and Moonbeam heard Megatron's gun going off—the signal that time was up—they both had to return to the ground. Moonbeam, looking exhausted, turned to robot mode and touched down slowly, but Starscream (just to show off) stayed in jet mode and executed a perfect nose dive, touching down as gently as a leaf.

"Hah!" said Starscream, turning to robot mode and walking over to Moonbeam, who was leaning over, panting, hands on her knees. "Not a scratch on me!"

"Are there any _impartial_ judges here?" asked Thundercracker, knowing that everyone had some sort of bias. Skywarp, for example, would have voted for Moonbeam, even if she hadn't been able to fly at all, and even if Moonbeam _had_ won, Gemstone never would have voted for her.

"Well, what do you think?" Starscream asked baby Stars, taking him out of the air for a minute to hold him. Stars made a sort of whimpering noise and floated back up, wings twitching. "Do you think Daddy won?"

Stars squealed again, turned himself into a little jet, and descended onto Starscream's palm.

"So, he can turn into a jet now?" said Gemstone. "Interesting."

"You moron," Moonbeam snapped. "Transformation is instinctive. They both knew how to do it from the moment they were born."

"Well, excuse _me_, Miss High-and-Mighty," Gemstone said sarcastically. "What, am I not allowed to talk now?"

"Actually, it would be better if you just left forever," Moonbeam said back.

"Over my dead body!" Gemstone shouted.

"That can be arranged," Moonbeam sneered.

"We all know you can lose a dogfight in the most humiliating way possible," Gemstone taunted. "But can you lose a catfight too?"

With an angry scream, Moonbeam attacked Gemstone, knocking her onto the ground. Gemstone, as always, was tougher—she took advantage of the already-weakened Moonbeam and proceeded to mercilessly beat her to a pulp.

"Bring it on, slut!" Moonbeam screeched. "Bring it on!"

"No, no!" Skywarp waved his hands in the air helplessly. "Let's be smart and bring it _off_!"

Neither femme was listening, though. They continued to fight, moves including but not limited to biting, scratching, kicking, and punching (mostly on Gemstone's part).

"You're dead, Moonbeam!" Gemstone hollered, sinking her teeth into Moonbeam's wings.

Thundercracker was biting his lip as he watched them fight. Dear Primus, was that _hot_. Femmes fighting. HOT. Of course, Thundercracker was already rock-hard and trying to hide it—if anyone saw, he would never live it down…but when the fight started to get worse, he was horrified to find that his interface panel had opened by itself. In _public_.

"I-I think I have to go inside for a moment," Thundercracker said anxiously, rushing back into base. Meanwhile, the fight continued on.

"Please, just stop!" Skywarp was insisting, trying to pull the two of them apart. "I can't let you get hurt, kissy-wissy! I would never forgive myself!"

Starscream, watching the fight with interest, was wondering why Skywarp insisted on protecting Moonbeam, even when she seemed to enjoy tearing his spark to threads. It was clear that his love wouldn't let him stop, though—to everyone's surprise, he jumped right into the catfight and held the two battling femmes apart.

"Let me at her!" Moonbeam screamed.

"Yeah, let go!" Gemstone shouted.

"No! Stop it right now!" Skywarp grabbed Moonbeam's arm and teleported her back into base, leaving all the other Decepticons to follow. Megatron, Gemstone, and Starscream walked into the main monitor room, where a scratched, bleeding, exhausted Moonbeam was sulking on the couch. Skywarp was trying to comfort her.

"Well, Moonbeam," said Starscream smugly, walking over to her and lifting her head up by her chin, "you _lost_."

"Yeah, twice." Gemstone shot Moonbeam a nasty smirk.

"Oh, shut the slag up," Moonbeam growled. "I hate you both."

"What a sore loser," said Starscream, and Gemstone giggled. The two of them left the room, followed by Megatron, leaving Moonbeam alone to pout.


	19. The Secret

**THAT NIGHT…**

Thundercracker held Gemstone close on the cold repair table. Skywarp was helping Starscream with the little twins tonight, so Thundercracker was able to spend the night with Gemstone. They were all alone in the med bay, and normally they would've interfaced—not only was she his fake girlfriend, they also seemed to be "friends with benefits". For some reason, though, she hadn't initiated anything, and Thundercracker was confused.

"Gemstone, hon?" he asked, squeezing her tight. "Is everything okay?"

"Yes, I'm fine," she whispered, but her tone of voice disagreed with this statement.

_Slag it_, _I hate it when femmes do this_, Thundercracker thought to himself. That was what frustrated him most about femmes—they never told you exactly what they were thinking.

"Mechs aren't any good at guessing," Thundercracker told her. "Talk to me."

"You just want to 'face," Gemstone mumbled.

"Well, usually you do, too," Thundercracker pointed out.

"I'm too tired, okay?" Gemstone turned away from Thundercracker and sighed.

_Every mech hears THAT in his lifetime_, Thundercracker thought, rolling his eyes. _Femmes_! _Beautiful_, _yet so dangerous_…_any mech_'_s weakness_.

"I wish you would tell me what's bothering you," said Thundercracker. "You know I don't like playing games."

Gemstone looked angry and growled, "It's that Moonbeam. I wish you would abandon her."

"Why?" asked Thundercracker.

"Are you slaggin' blind?" she demanded. "She is the MEANEST femme I have EVER met! I never get any respect from her! I never get respect from _anyone_! Never! That's all you want, TC, isn't it? Interface? Is that all mechs want?"

"Um…pretty much, yeah," said Thundercracker, knowing there was no right answer.

"Moonbeam gets tons of respect," Gemstone continued sarcastically. "Why not? After all, _she_'_s _a pureblood Seeker and a trained medic. _She _doesn't charge mechs for a cheap sexual thrill. Instead she just picks one and plays with his spark, _enjoying_ it the whole time! How could you _possibly_ love someone like her?"

"Listen, hon, she—" Thundercracker paused. "Wait, are you…are you _jealous_?"

"Jealous!" Gemstone backhanded Thundercracker onto the repair table. "Of _her_? What's wrong with you? Do you think I'm not happy with who I am? Of course I'm not jealous! I'm anything but!"

"No need to get _violent_," said Thundercracker, sitting up again and rubbing his cheek.

"Leave me alone," Gemstone told him, scowling.

"I'm sorry," Thundercracker mumbled.

"Don't worry about it." Gemstone looked down at the floor; her voice wasn't angry any more, just shaky, like she was about to crack.

Thundercracker reached out and gave Gemstone a hug, hoping she wouldn't pull away. Luckily, she didn't.

"Tell me what's on your mind, hon," Thundercracker whispered.

Gemstone lifted up her head, and Thundercracker was kind of horrified to see tears leaking out of her eyes. Oh no. What had he _done_? It was true that he loved it when femmes fought, and of course he loved it when they 'faced with him, but he DID NOT like it when they cried. It made him feel uncomfortable, and he never knew what to do.

"Oh, TC, I'm not always as confident as I look," Gemstone told him, her voice quavering. "I-I hate to say it, but Moonbeam was right about one thing. One big thing."

"What? What was she right about?"

"She was right that I wasn't a true Decepticon," Gemstone wiped her eyes, trying to stop her tears from flowing down her face.

"Of course you are." Thundercracker was perplexed. "You don't have to be a Seeker! Look at Soundwave, Shockwave, even Megatron! And the twins, they only have Seeker CNA on Starscream's side."

"No, don't you get it?" Gemstone cried, then burst into tears. "It's…it's n-not that I'm not a Seeker. I-I'm not even a purebred Decepticon!"

"What?!" said Thundercracker. "What do you mean?!"

"I mean, I'm only a Decepticon on my father's side," Gemstone sobbed. "I-I'm a _car_ in vehicle mode. I'm a CAR!"

Thundercracker was so shocked, he couldn't think of anything to say, but Gemstone just barreled on.

"The red eyes, the ability to fly in robot mode, I get it all from my father," Gemstone explained tearfully. "That's why my mother abandoned me. She said I was becoming too much like my father. I was left on my own, with nothing to do but become a hooker at way too young an age. Maybe mechs will 'face with me if I charge them, or maybe I can have a fake boyfriend like you, but no mech would ever want me for real. Why would they? I'm just a filthy half-breed hooker, only able to keep herself alive by selling her body to sleazy, intoxicated mechs, nothing but the by-product of rape."

With that, Gemstone fell backwards onto the repair table, crying like she would never stop. Thundercracker, feeling helpless, stroked her back, trying to get her to calm down. When the sobs finally began to subside, he hoisted her up, letting her lean against him.

"Listen, Gemstone," he told her, trying to stay calm. "Being a true Decepticon is not all about what side your parents belong to. It's about what side _you _belong to."

"What do you mean?" Gemstone sniffed and wiped her eyes.

"I mean that you have a choice," Thundercracker told her, taking her hands in his. "Your life doesn't have to be like this. You can be anyone you want to be."

"It's not that simple." Collapsing into Thundercracker's arms, Gemstone started to cry again.

"Gemstone, look at me," Thundercracker said seriously. When she lifted her head up, staring into his eyes, he let his spark speak for him. "I-I don't see you that way. I see you as a beautiful, intelligent, strong femme who's just had a lot of curveballs thrown her way. Someday you'll find a mech who loves you for who you are. You're one of the best Decepticons I've ever known, and I can't let you go thinking anything otherwise."

"Thank you, TC," Gemstone mumbled. "No one's ever said that to me before. They really haven't."

"We don't have to 'face tonight, hon," Thundercracker told her, gently lifting her head up. "We can do whatever you want."

"What do you mean?" Gemstone stammered.

"I'm going to give you the respect you so deserve," Thundercracker whispered, placing one arm behind her back, the other behind her neck, and closing his eyes. Gemstone, figuring out pretty quickly what was going on, closed her eyes too, draped her arms around Thundercracker's neck, and joined him in the deep, beautiful kiss.

It was happening. This was happening now. Thundercracker's spark was racing, his hands were shaking, a strange but wonderful feeling coursed throughout his whole body as he continued kissing Gemstone right there in the med bay. It was like nothing he felt when they were 'facing, something he had never felt before, and he didn't have any idea what it was, but it was nothing short of amazing.

The nervousness, the shakiness, the worry, it passed as Thundercracker lost himself in the kiss. It was almost like the feeling he got when he was flying, the same exhilaration and pure joy, the feeling of being where he belonged.


	20. Reward

**WARNING: Graphic chapter ahead! **

It was the twins' feeding time again, and Starscream was struggling to feed them both at the same time, while Megatron was at the table, calmly having some breakfast, as usual. Gemstone and Thundercracker were at the table. Gemstone had been acting a little weird that whole morning, and Thundercracker kept staring at her—even though Starscream didn't think he was aware that he was doing it.

"Can you help me out here for once, Megatron?!" Starscream demanded, feeling harried as he tried to keep the screaming sparklings from falling out of his arms. "They're your sparklings too, y'know!"

"Wish I could, Starscream, but I have more important things to do," said Megatron. "Taking care of them is _your _job."

"Megatron," said Gemstone quietly. "When was the last time you held them?"

"On their creation day, I do believe," Megatron told her.

"When two parents have a sparkling," Gemstone began, "both parents need to be there. You need to hold them and feed them too. Otherwise they'll grow up thinking you don't love them. They want to be close to you _and _Starscream."

Megatron looked doubtful, but little Megs stretched out his tiny arms and made a little squealing noise.

"See, he wants you." Gemstone smiled. Scooping Megs out of Starscream's hands, she carefully passed the little thing over to his other parent, the one who had claimed to have no time for him. When Megatron had baby Megs in his arms, Megs reached for one of the little miniature energon cubes sitting on the table.

"No, Megs," Megatron told him. "You can only drink the special sparkling formula."

"Take it," said Starscream, giving Megatron the full bottle.

It was a little awkward, but Megatron managed to feed Twin Number One while Starscream fed his brother, and finally, they were full.

"Well, you were hungry, weren't you, little sparkling?" said Megatron, holding Megs up.

Megs made a little whining sort of noise, then threw up all over his father. Starscream was unable to contain his joy, almost letting Stars fall out of his arms as he burst into laughter; Thundercracker and Gemstone were soon laughing too.

"Hey, that is _not _funny," said Megatron, red eyes flashing. "Take him back!"

"Well, it's all part of raising sparklings, Megatron," Starscream told him, smirking as he took the other twin back. "Besides, how was I to know that none of us knows how to take care of a sparkling—much less two?"

Stars floated up into the air again, his signal for when he was full and wanted to fly again. Thundercracker had invented a game for him recently, where he stuck one finger in the air and let Stars chase it around. It helped him develop the flying instinct and he never seemed to tire of it, so he could play and learn at the same time.

"Okay, that is just _too _cute." Gemstone giggled. "Even for me."

"Do you want to try it, then?" Thundercracker asked.

"Sure," Gemstone told him and started the game. Twitching his tiny wings and chasing after Gemstone's finger, Stars squealed with baby happiness and flew around surprisingly quickly.

"Listen, all of you, I've got to go on a mission today," Megatron told them, setting his breakfast energon down and standing up. "I probably won't be home until after dark."

"You mean I have to do all this sparkling stuff myself?!" Starscream cried. "_Again_?!"

"I'll give you your reward tonight when I get home," said Megatron, leaving no doubt as to what he meant. "Don't you three stop being adorable."

"Oh ha-ha, very funny," Starscream grumbled.

**THAT EVENING…**

Megatron was right—darkness had fallen, and he still wasn't back yet. Starscream couldn't wait for him to return, though, for a reward...a reward that he had planned.

Starscream waited in Megatron's office for him to return, and he felt himself perk up when he heard Megatron walk back into base. Starscream waited and waited…and finally, Megatron entered his office.

"I believe you've forgotten something, Megatron," Starscream said smoothly. "My reward?"

"Oh, yes," said Megatron, then started rummaging around in one of his desk drawers. "Hey, where are the handcuffs?"

"Looking for something?" Starscream sneered, holding up the handcuffs.

Before Megatron could react, Starscream tackled him and knocked him back onto the floor, then fastened the handcuffs around his wrists.

"_This _time," said Starscream, letting out an evil laugh, "_I_'_m _going to spike _you_!"

"NEVER!" hollered Megatron. "I will never take on the submissive role!"

"Is that right?" Starscream reached one hand down, in between Megatron's thighs, and stuck his fingers deep inside, one by one. To his satisfaction, the old mech was already getting wet. Tonight, Starscream would own him.

Just to get started, Starscream lay back on the floor, released his erect spike, and said, "Give it to me, Megsy."

"I will never suck your filthy spike," Megatron snapped.

"What's the matter?" Starscream sat up and grabbed Megatron's cheeks. "Afraid of a face-full of foam?"

"I'm not afraid of anything," Megatron told him furiously. "I just will not reduce myself to this level."

"No 'facing till you do," said Starscream, spreading his legs wide and gesturing downwards.

"All right, I'll do it," Megatron mumbled. "And you are going to enjoy it."

It went without saying that Starscream didn't get blow jobs from Megatron very often. Usually it was the other way around…wow. That felt really good. Of course, Starscream had been given blow jobs before, by countless femmes, but…

Starscream leaned back on the floor again and moaned in pleasure, which just encouraged Megatron. It got better by the second; Starscream's spike felt hot, tingling, like a volcano about to explode. It felt almost like an inviting, juicy, form-fitting valve, with Megatron's tongue massaging the shaft to a fault.

"Oh, I-I'm g-gonnaco—augh!" said Starscream, overloading into Megatron's mouth.

Megatron swallowed with a look of disgust. "How was that?"

"That was amazing," Starscream told him sincerely, then sat up again, bringing Megatron into an impromptu kiss. They kept making out for a while, during which time Starscream waited to get pressurized enough to penetrate. Yes, he would penetrate Megatron instead of the other way around! Normally, he wouldn't have been this bold…but this was the first time he'd been able to 'face with Megatron since the time the little twins had been conceived; consequently, his libido was at an all-time high. Inevitably, he was in heat again.

Megatron was handcuffed, but Starscream grabbed one of his hands and moved it up and down one wing, causing a feeling of ecstasy to pass through his whole body. Ever since he'd recovered from the twins' birth, his wings didn't hurt any more, and he felt like his old self once again. Having his slag buddy handling his wings, then, was making everything even better.

Once the time had come, Starscream quickly crawled out from under Megatron and kneeled in front of him, then (not without some difficulty) managed to pry his legs apart.

"What are you doing?" Megatron demanded. "Just returning the blow job, I hope."

"I'm the giver this time, Megatron, and you're the receiver," Starscream whispered, tugging a little at the shackles that bound his boss's hands.

"I will never—yaahh!" Megatron let out a yelp of surprise as Starscream shoved himself in, as deep and as hard as he could.

"Oh, I'm sorry," Starscream cooed. "Was that a little painful, Megsy? I'll try to be gentle."

"No one plays gentle with Megatron!" hollered Megatron.

"If you say so," said Starscream, setting a slow pace then getting steadily faster and harder as the session went on. It felt exhilarating to be the dominant once for once, to be in control, to be on top—literally _and _figuratively. Megatron was letting out hybrid grunt-moans, and Starscream was wailing in pleasure.

"WHO'S the leader?" Starscream continued his fast thrusts, loving the feeling of filling Megatron up and watching him squirm.

"Y-You are," Megatron mumbled, raising his hips to adjust to Starscream's speedy pace.

"I can't HEAR you!"

"YOU ARE!"

"Yes, yes, that's right!" Starscream cried, and kept riding the gray mech, who was moaning even louder now. Megatron was handcuffed, but Starscream might as well have lassoed him, because he really _was _getting his "reward" the way he wanted.

Their steamy, animal-instinct session kept going. If Cybertronians could sweat, they would both be covered in it right now. No matter—they were both soaking wet anyway. Starscream heard himself screaming as his overload hit, his hot, sticky transfluid flowing out into his lover shamelessly. Megatron overloaded too with a howl; Starscream collapsed on top of him and drew him into a sloppy kiss.

"Did you like it?" Starscream whispered in Megatron's ear, snaking along beside him and taking the handcuffs off, but Megatron just grunted again and tried to lift up his head. Starscream nuzzled his cheek. "I guess you're a little wore out then, huh? Maybe I have done this right."


	21. Triple Dating Disaster

"You know what I've noticed?" Moonbeam said casually, feeding Skywarp some more energon pudding. "Thundercracker never takes his girlfriend, Gemstone, on dates. Why is that?"

Thundercracker, Gemstone, Skywarp and Moonbeam were at the kitchen table, having some breakfast. Moonbeam was flirtatiously feeding Skywarp his breakfast. Gemstone looked like she was about to throw up.

"Moonbeam, Skywarp can eat his own pudding just fine," she said angrily.

"Shut the slag up," said Moonbeam, sticking another spoonful of the treat into Skywarp's mouth.

"Well, that's actually a good idea," said Thundercracker. "Gemstone? Do you need some help eating your pudding?"

"I'll share," Skywarp told her, pushing the container over. "It's fresh and yummy."

"Oh, okay," said Gemstone, and Thundercracker could have sworn she was blushing a little.

Thundercracker was feeding Gemstone her energon pudding, and she was trying not to have a giggle fit in between bites, as Thundercracker kept talking.

"You know, we _should _go on a date sometime," he was saying. "I guess we've been so busy that we haven't even thought of it. We can go somewhere real nice."

"Hey, I know!" said Skywarp. "Why don't we go on a _double _date? Me, Moonbeam, Thundercracker, and Gemstone!"

"Okay, I guess." Gemstone shrugged.

"Skywarp, may I have a word with you?" said Thundercracker, and then took his brother into the corner away from the femmes. "Where the slag did _that _come from?"

"Well, secretly, I wanted Gemstone and Moonbeam to bond over dinner or something," Skywarp whispered.

"Are you _on _something, 'Warp?" Thundercracker hissed. "They despise each other."

"Yes, I know." Skywarp nodded. "That's why I think a double date will be just the thing to pull their friendship together."

Thundercracker sighed. This wasn't an entirely bad idea. After all, if they went on a double date, he could flirt with Gemstone and show off his "relationship". After all, the only ones who knew the relationship was fake were Thundercracker and Gemstone themselves. Starscream did suspect it, but he couldn't prove anything.

"Well, I suppose we've got nothing to lose," Thundercracker told him. "Let's do it."

When they got back to the table, Skywarp told the femmes, "I discussed it with Thundercracker, and he thinks we should give it a go."

"That's wonderful, sugar daddy." Moonbeam got up and hugged Skywarp, then they all sat down again.

Not long after, an exhausted-looking Starscream walked into the room, trying to balance the screaming twins in one arm while holding their empty bottles in another. When he got to the kitchen he collapsed into one of the chairs, letting his head land down on the table.

"Here, let me take those darlings," said Skywarp quickly, lifting both twins out of Starscream's lap. "Will someone please fill up their bottles? It's time for them to feed again."

Gemstone filled the twins' bottles while Skywarp rocked them, trying to get them to stop crying. Soon enough, they had, reaching their little arms out and cooing for attention.

"You really are good with sparklings, Skywarp," Gemstone observed, setting both full bottles on the table. "The twins love you."

"Well, who couldn't love them?" Skywarp just smiled.

"It seems like Megatron doesn't love them," Starscream mumbled, lifting his head up off the table.

"What do you mean?" Gemstone asked.

"Megatron is a horrible father," said Starscream, his voice getting louder and angrier with every word. "When I was sparked with them, sure, he was a lot gentler with me, and he was always telling me not to stress them and to drink lots of nourishment. Now that they're born, he doesn't seem to care as much. And he _never does anything_!"

"You know, maybe you two weren't ready for twins," Thundercracker said carefully.

"Well, they _were _an accident," Starscream reminded him. "In fact, after I told him, he got really angry with me."

"Even so, you deserve a little break," said Skywarp, smiling. "Why don't you come on our double date? You can bring Megatron, and it can be a triple date."

Moonbeam frowned. "That would be…odd, at the least."

"I could use a break, though," Starscream told them. "We can ask Mr. Lazy-Pants once he finally decides to come in for his breakfast."

Starscream started eating his own breakfast, while Skywarp lovingly took care of the twins. It was too bad Moonbeam didn't want a family—he would have been a great father. Just as Stars and Megs were finishing their bottles, Megatron walked in, holding his data pad, and sat down at the table.

"Would you be a dear and get me some high-grade, Starscream?" he asked, leaning back in the chair.

"Get it yourself," said Starscream, scowling at him. "Besides, we wanted to ask you something."

"Thundercracker and I are going on a double date with Gemstone and Moonbeam," Skywarp explained excitedly. "We were wondering if you and Starscream wanted to come along."

"Well, I have been rather strained lately," Megatron said pensively.

"Strained!" Starscream screeched. "Who's been running himself ragged every day? Trying to keep these miserable little monsters in line? Not getting enough SLEEP?!"

"Looks like you're just having Skywarp do all of it," Megatron pointed out.

"Starscream does plenty," said Skywarp, sticking pacifiers in both sparklings' mouths. "Taking care of sparklings is a hard job."

"So is leading the Decepticons," said Megatron. "And he can't do that either, mind you."

Inevitably, Starscream was about to attack Megatron, but Gemstone held him back.

"Look, you two, if you're going to be parents, you're going to _have _to get along," she insisted. "Even if you _don_'_t _truly love each other, be civil with each other for the sparklings' sake. Do you really want to be the kind of father who's never around?"

"I…no, I don't," said Megatron.

"It's hard for a sparkling to grow up when its parents hate each other," Gemstone continued. "Or, in my case, where you never knew your father and your mother hates you."

"Please come on the date with us," Skywarp added. "It'll be fun."

Megatron and Starscream looked reluctant, but finally they both agreed. Skywarp gently handed the twins back to Starscream. They were full and settling into their regular after-meal stasis nap. Starscream kissed both little helmets and gave them both a hug; they cuddled up to him in their sleep. They really weren't so bad when they weren't screaming.

"So, if we go out," said Starscream, stroking the twins' helmets with his finger, "who's going to watch the twins?"

"I guess I could get Soundwave to do it," Megatron said slowly. "He listens to me."

"Yeah, they could have a play-date with Rumble and Frenzy or something." Gemstone giggled.

"Just keep Ravage away from them," said Skywarp. "For all we know, he'd try to eat them."

**THAT NIGHT…**

All three couples were ready for a night out. They'd tried to think of somewhere fun and exciting, but besides the smoothie shop and the Cybertronian Mechs' Club, there wasn't that much to do. The smoothie shop wasn't a very romantic place, but they decided to go there because the only femmes who went to the strip club were there for money. Besides, Gemstone most likely would not want to go there on a date.

So the smoothie shop it was. Skywarp, of course, paid for Moonbeam's, and Thundercracker paid for Gemstone. Megatron insisted that Starscream pay for himself.

"I'd pay for my own," Gemstone was saying earnestly. "I just truly am broke."

"Don't worry," said Thundercracker. "Don't feel guilty."

"You don't have to buy stuff for me to love you, TC," Gemstone whispered, putting one hand on Thundercracker's wing. Most likely, she was emphasizing their fake relationship to Skywarp and Moonbeam (who were standing right there), but Thundercracker felt a weird sort of tingling feeling when she touched him. Probably just because she was touching his wing. Or because he was thirsty. Or…oh. _She just touched me again_…_mm_, _nice_.

When all six of them got back to the table, Starscream made a smirking face at Thundercracker, who gave him the meanest look possible, his eyes flashing a bright red color. Starscream just put his hand over his mouth and tried to control his laughter.

Once they were all at the table, it was time for the hard part: dinner conversation.

"So…um…can you believe this Earth weather we're having?" said Starscream rather awkwardly, playing with his smoothie.

"We still have a lot to get used to." Gemstone sighed. "Kaon might have sucked, but at least I was on Cybertron at all."

"You grew up in _Kaon_?" Moonbeam wasn't doing a good job at concealing her look of disgust.

"Well, my mother didn't have a lot of money," Gemstone mumbled, staring down at the table. "It's kind of a long story but…yeah. We lived in Kaon."

"Oh, Vos is so much better," said Moonbeam, smirking. "I've never even _been _to Kaon. Or, even worse, the Cybertronian Mechs' Club."

"We didn't want to live in Kaon…" Gemstone's tone rose to a slightly higher pitch. "We _had _to."

"So what happened to your mother now?" Moonbeam asked, raising one eyebrow. "Was she a whore just like you? Is that why you couldn't afford a better place?"

"My…my mother was a saint." Gemstone's voice quivered, and she was clearly struggling not to cry.

Starscream didn't know much about Gemstone or her backstory, but Moonbeam was again acting like the blatant bitch she was, and Thundercracker wasn't sticking up for his fake girlfriend, and everybody just sitting there watching. This wasn't about Skywarp or Gemstone or Thundercracker or anybody. This was about Moonbeam, and it was about Starscream.

"Shut _up_!" Starscream shouted at her, standing up and pointing his gun right at her face. "Shut up forever! I am _tired _of you, you worthless bitch!"

"Call me a worthless bitch, will you?" Moonbeam's eyes flashed with anger and she stood up too. "Just try and shoot me, Starscream."

"No!" Skywarp shot up and locked his arms around Moonbeam protectively. "No one's shooting anyone. Sit back down and drink your energon smoothies!"

"I'm not drinking anything!" Starscream snatched up Moonbeam's smoothie and tossed it at her, the bright pink fuel spilling all over her black-and-gold paint job.

"Oh, it's on now!" Moonbeam shrieked, and with a furious, warrior-like howl, she attacked Starscream, knocking him backwards onto the floor. The fight escalated quickly.

"You go Starscream!" Gemstone was almost like a cheerleader. "Rip her wings off!"

"No! Don't!" Skywarp sounded almost hysterical—but nobody listened.

Thundercracker, meanwhile, didn't know what to do. Of course, he didn't want Moonbeam, his love, to get hurt in any way, but he was feeling bad for his fake girlfriend, too—Moonbeam had no idea what she had gone through, and to be honest, she was showing Gemstone no respect. Who was he supposed to side with? Should he help Skywarp stop the fight? What was he supposed to do?

It would have been different if she was fighting Gemstone again, because it was hot to watch femmes fight…but this time, instead of Thundercracker's crush and his fake girlfriend, it was his crush and Starscream. That was more jarring than hot.

Thundercracker _hated _conflict! And he hated not knowing who he should be mad at! And he hating not knowing what to do! And why was he not defending Moonbeam?!

Moonbeam…the beautiful Moonbeam…she was getting hurt…but Gemstone was hurt too…by Moonbeam. Who was the victim here? Who was in the wrong? Thundercracker was starting to get a massive processor ache.

"Please, please stop!" Skywarp was screaming, tears running down his face. "Stop it right now!"

"That's enough, Starscream." Megatron got up calmly and pried them apart. Starscream and Moonbeam, both lightweights, were easy to pick up. "Call it off."

"We're going home right away," Skywarp added, wiping his eyes. "Thanks for ruining our night, Starscream."

…

"I can't believe Skywarp got mad at me," Starscream said for about the tenth time that night. As usual, he was sharing the room with Thundercracker. The twins were fast asleep in their crib, and Starscream had been complaining about the smoothie incident all night long.

"Well, you _did_ attack his girlfriend," Thundercracker grunted, turning towards the wall.

"Thundercracker, this is getting ridiculous." Starscream glared at the blue jet. "I just couldn't take it any more. Skywarp is so slagging _blind_ to everything she does…and I'm not talking just about how she was treating Gemstone, Thundercracker. It's about how she treats me, how she treats you, and _especially _how she treats Skywarp. She _loves _to play him for a fool, and every single time I try to warn him, he just gets mad and accuses me of being jealous. When she breaks his spark, he's going to be the last one to know."

"Skywarp is going to stay with Moonbeam," said Thundercracker. "Even if she isn't looking for the commitment that he is, he's going to hold onto her as much as he can. Now his entire _life _centers around her, basically."

"What is the Mech Code, Thundercracker?" Starscream demanded. "What is it?"

"Mechs before femmes," said Thundercracker. "So?"

"_So_, we're his brothers and his friends," Starscream snapped. "And he's turned his backs on us for her. In the end, I swear she's going to mess him up big-time, and then what's going to happen?"

"Well, it's no business of ours, is it?" Thundercracker flexed his wings a little and glared at the wall.

"It's completely our business!" Starscream shouted—but he must have shouted a bit too loud, because the twins woke up and started screaming.

"I'll get Stars, you get Megs," Starscream grumbled. Thundercracker followed him to the crib, and they fed and rocked the sparklings until they fell asleep again. The harder part, though, was for Starscream and Thundercracker to get any recharge themselves.

**TO BE CONTINUED…**


	22. Wind Beneath My Wings

**DISCLAIMER: "Wind Beneath My Wings" does not belong to me! It was used with much thanks to Bette Midler. **

**SEVERAL DAYS LATER…**

Starscream was feeding Stars his breakfast at the table. Thundercracker was trying to feed Megs, but Megs refused to eat.

"Nug!" said Megs, pointing at Thundercracker.

"Look, would you quit calling me 'Nug' already?!" Thundercracker yelled.

"NUG!" Megs insisted, still pointing.

"Did he seriously just call you Nug?" Starscream laughed as he took Megs into his arms.

"Yes, he's been doing it all week," Thundercracker grumbled, then said to Megs, "Can you say '_Uncle Thundercracker_'?"

"Nug," Megs said again.

"Great," said Thundercracker. "My own nephew likes to call me 'Nug'. Whatever _that _means."

Starscream just laughed. "I think it's funny."

Of course, not everyone was laughing. As breakfast wore on, the mood sank. Skywarp still wasn't speaking to Starscream, who believed that, as usual, he was completely justified and in the right, and everybody else was just annoying and wrong. During breakfast, the two of them didn't even look at each other.

Moonbeam seemed to be "hot" again in her "hot-and-cold" relationship with Skywarp. Usually they were all lovey-dovey, but today whenever she talked to him his cheeks turned a bright crimson red and he just mumbled something back. Starscream and Thundercracker, who had of course known him all his life, knew that this was the way he acted when he was extremely nervous about something.

"Excuse us for a moment," said Starscream, and pulled Thundercracker aside. Once they were alone in the corner, he whispered, "Do you think Skywarp is acting kind of weird?"

"Yeah, I thought that too," Thundercracker whispered back. "Something's bugging him. I couldn't guess what, though."

The two jets looked back at the table. Moonbeam was being flirty with Skywarp, who was twitching a little and laughing nervously. When she put her hand on his cheek, he smiled weakly, but didn't seem to know what to do with his hands.

"Oh, dear Primus," said Starscream. "What if he's going to dump her?"

"Are you crazy?" Thundercracker said back. "Skywarp is totally in love with that femme."

"Maybe he realized that she's poison," Starscream insisted. "So he's trying to figure out how to let her down gently."

"Aw, that's scrap," Thundercracker told him sarcastically, but he shot a curious look in Skywarp's direction nevertheless.

"Should we ask him?" Starscream asked.

"Yeah…maybe it's for the better." Thundercracker nodded and they went back to the kitchen table.

"Skywarp, would you come with us for a moment?" Starscream asked the purple jet calmly.

"No, I won't." Skywarp glared at them. "I'm not talking to you two."

"Yes, you can sit by me, sugar daddy," Moonbeam cooed, holding Skywarp close and affectionately stroking his wings.

"Well, on second thought, it might be something important!" Skywarp mumbled, tripping on his words as he stumbled up from the table. When he got up he tried to push the chair in but ended up tripping over it instead. Cheeks redder than ever, he stood up again and ran to the corner, leaving Starscream and Thundercracker to follow.

"All right, 'Warp, what's up?" Starscream hissed.

"Umm…the sky?" Skywarp said nervously.

"We can see you're acting strange," Thundercracker told him. "Tell us why."

"What are you talking about?" Skywarp asked.

"You're acting really weird around Moonbeam!" said Starscream. "What are you planning on doing?"

"I-I'm not planning on doing anything," said Skywarp, but his cheeks were even redder, and he was fidgeting as he stared down at the ground, avoiding eye contact.

"You know, Skywarp, I know what you're up to," said Starscream. "I'm glad you finally saw how horrible Moonbeam is. Now go do it already. You don't need to worry about letting her down easily…she doesn't deserve it."

"_WHAT_?!" Skywarp cried, causing everyone else at the table to turn and stare; he made his voice quieter and repeated, "_What_?"

"Weren't you going to dump her?" Thundercracker asked. "Wasn't that why you were being weird around her?"

"No!" Skywarp cried. "And I'm _not _being weird around her!"

It was conspicuous, though; Skywarp looked towards Moonbeam again and both Starscream and Thundercracker saw fear in his eyes. Fear of what? Wasn't _he _going to be the one doing the dumping—before it was too late?

**THAT NIGHT AT DINNERTIME…**

Skywarp looked like he was going to throw up. Starscream and Thundercracker _knew _he was going to dump Moonbeam now. There was no other explanation for his strange behavior.

Finally, just when dinner was ending, he stood up and asked in a squeaky voice, "May I have everyone's attention, please?"

Everyone's attention? Now, that wasn't like Skywarp at all! It might be true that he was dumping Moonbeam, but he wouldn't have humiliated her in front of all the other Decepticons, would he?

Once all heads were turned his way, though, he just barreled on. "Could I please speak to the femme Seeker they call Moonbeam?"

Starscream and Thundercracker were watching, eyes wide, on the edges of their seats, waiting to see what would happen as Moonbeam stood up. Skywarp grabbed her hand and led her away from the table and in the middle of the whole room.

"Moonbeam," Skywarp said as he put one hand on her shoulder, his voice shaking. "There's something I've been wanting to say to you for a very long time now, but I've only just now summoned up the courage."

"What is it, sugar daddy?" Moonbeam looked genuinely curious as she stared up into Skywarp's eyes.

Skywarp took a deep breath and closed his eyes tight as if wishing for the best. The whole kitchen was as quiet as a tomb. All the Decepticons were watching. Starscream and Thundercracker braced for impact—Moonbeam's reaction was not going to be pretty.

"Soundwave?" said Skywarp suddenly. "Would you come up here for a minute?"

"Permission requested," said Soundwave.

"Just go," Megatron said suddenly. "Whatever this is, I want it over with so I can finish my dinner."

"Will you play this, please?" Skywarp held out a little cassette to Soundwave, who started to play the tape. To everyone's surprise, a slow, beautiful song started playing:

_It must have been cold there in my shadow_

_To never have sunlight on your face_

_You were content to let me shine_, _that_'_s your way_

_You always walk a step behind_…

By the time the chorus started playing, Moonbeam's hands were up to her face, and she was looking gobsmacked. Everyone was gaping.

_Did you ever know that you_'_re my hero_?

_And everything I would like to be_?

_I could fly higher than an eagle_

_For you are the wind beneath my wings_

"You really _are_ the wind beneath my wings," said Skywarp, kneeling to the ground and holding out a huge, gleaming diamond ring. "Moonbeam, my radiant goddess, will you take my hand in marriage?"

Everyone gasped. Starscream felt his jaw drop; Thundercracker was looking equally shocked. Gemstone was clinging to Thundercracker, her red eyes wide. Soundwave was, as usual, expressionless as he kept playing the song, but even Megatron was looking surprised at this interesting development.

"So? What do you say?" Skywarp whispered, holding out the ring.

"What do I say?" Moonbeam took the ring from Skywarp and put it right on her finger. "I say yes, Skywarp. Yes!"

"I love you, Moonbeam!" Skywarp cried happily as he jumped up and scooped his bride up into his arms, bridal-style.

"I love you too, Skywarp," said Moonbeam tearfully, and brought Skywarp into a long, romantic kiss.

Everyone cheered.

…

As usual, Starscream and Thundercracker were alone with the little twins in the Seekers' room. The twins were sleeping; Starscream and Thundercracker were quietly discussing Skywarp's shocking proposal.

"I guess we should have seen that coming," said Starscream. "Look, I know I said I hated Moonbeam…but it's just hard to feel the same way after watching that. You know, like, how maybe they'll be able to make it work after all."

"Maybe they can." Thundercracker sounded thoughtful.

"I bet that huge, expensive diamond ring had something to do with her saying yes, though," Starscream pointed out.

"You know, Screamer," said Thundercracker, "they say a femme has three times when she's allowed to act like a complete and utter self-absorbed bitch: when she's carrying, when it's her creation day, _and _on her wedding day."

"Well, I can understand the first two," said Starscream, "but Moonbeam is already a complete and utter self-absorbed bitch. So I'm kind of scared right now."

"Never underestimate brides-to-be," Thundercracker agreed.

**WILL MOONBEAM BECOME A BRIDEZILLA? READ ON TO FIND OUT!**


	23. The Way It Hurts

**THAT NEXT DAY…**

"Obviously, there will be only two 'Cons planning the wedding," Starscream was saying to Skywarp. "The bride, and the maid of honor."

"Weddings take care of themselves," Thundercracker agreed.

"What do you mean?" asked Skywarp.

"Well, the mech mindset is, 'I don't care as long as I'm marrying her', but femmes see it more as a huge social event," Starscream explained. "For some reason, femmes are so inherently frightening sometimes. If you try and bust their plans, they will hunt you down and kill you."

"Scrap, I love 'em anyway." Thundercracker sighed and lay back on the bed. When Starscream looked closely he could see that his eyes were as full of love as ever. Of course he was thinking that he still wanted to be the one marrying Moonbeam…but trying to ruin Skywarp's wedding plans would destroy the Mech Code and probably even the Trine.

"I wish we could be married right now," Skywarp said dreamily. "You're right, Starscream. I don't care about some huge social thing. I know the actual wedding isn't for months, but I just want to live the rest of my life with Moonbeam, my angel."

_Well_, _she_'_s HARDLY an angel_, Starscream thought, but he kept it to himself.

"Come to think of it, Moonbeam doesn't really _have _a maid of honor," Starscream pointed out. "The only other femme here is Gemstone, and Gemstone would never do it, even if Moonbeam threatened her life."

"Moonbeam couldn't kill Gemstone," said Thundercracker. "Gemstone is pretty tough. She doesn't just slap like Moonbeam does—she'll sock you right across the room if you get her angry enough."

"Anyway," said Starscream, turning to Thundercracker, "do you remember what we had planned for Skywarp this weekend?"

"Oh, yes, I remember." Thundercracker was grinning.

"What?" asked Skywarp. "You guys have something planned?"

"Of course," Starscream told him seriously. "We're going to invite all the Decepticons except Gemstone and Moonbeam. No femmes allowed…well, except for the entertainment."

"Why no femmes?" Skywarp asked.

Thundercracker just laughed and pulled Skywarp up off the bed. "Skywarp…don't you know what a bachelor party is?"

**THAT NIGHT…**

"So, Skywarp's having a bachelor party, is he now?" Gemstone was smirking. "I can't _tell _you how many bachelor parties have gone on in the Cybertronian Mechs' Club. I don't mean to sound slutty but…I did get a lot of money on those nights."

"Technically, you can come if you want," Thundercracker said.

"Thundercracker, I don't like that club," Gemstone told him solemnly. "There are plenty of other hookers there. Once you took me away from my old world, I don't ever want to go back."

"I won't make you go back," Thundercracker told her, hugging her tight. It felt so sweet, so wonderful, to have his arms wrapped protectively around a femme who was perfectly capable of taking care of herself. Genuine love from a femme was enough to make even the strongest Seekers feel vulnerable.

"Thank you," Gemstone whispered.

"Actually, as your fake boyfriend, I'm required to beat up any mech who tries to make a move on you," said Thundercracker.

"By the time you get to him, I'll have taken care of him for you," Gemstone replied. "You don't need to lift a blaster if a mech is hitting on _this _fake girlfriend."

"You know, when I took Skywarp and Thundercracker there one time, over a year ago, there was this hooker who tried to 'face with Skywarp," Thundercracker said thoughtfully, the memory still hazy in his mind. "I was pretty high on energon by then, but I do remember that he said no to her; he wanted to remain faithful to Moonbeam."

"That's sweet," said Gemstone. "I'm not surprised, though."

"If she was my girlfriend, like I want, I wouldn't cheat on her either," said Thundercracker.

"Thundercracker…" Gemstone grabbed his hands and stared up into his eyes. "Do you ever really think it'll happen?"

"I certainly have a chance with Moonbeam," Thundercracker insisted.

"Maybe we are doing this to make her jealous, but…" Gemstone shrugged. "I just don't know if you two really are meant for each other."

"What are you talking about?" Thundercracker demanded. "I don't know why Skywarp saw Moonbeam first. If he hadn't, she would have been mine, and for all I know, I could have been the one engaged to her right now, not him."

"How can you even _say _that?" Gemstone cried. "You should be happy for Skywarp!"

"I _am_ happy for him!" Thundercracker protested. "It's just that—"

"You mechs are all alike!" Gemstone glared at Thundercracker, her hands on her hips. "That's what it all comes down to, isn't it? You'll 'face with any femme, not knowing that it—someday it might _mean _something, someday you might actually be doing it with someone you love, but no! As long as she's pretty, and accomplished, and—and everything you could ever want! That's how you feel with Moonbeam, stupid slagging BITCH THAT SHE IS!"

"Gemstone, please calm down," Thundercracker pleaded.

"Don't you try and tell me what to do!" Gemstone yelled. "You know what? I _am _going to the bachelor party. And I _am _going to sleep with as many mechs as I want! And I'm going to charge them too! You want to know why?"

"Um…no," Thundercracker mumbled.

"Because I don't want to be your 'fake' girlfriend anyway!" she informed him, her red eyes flashing with anger as she made for the door. "I'd rather spread my legs for _any_ random drunk mech, as long as he's not YOU!"

"Where are you going?!" Thundercracker cried.

"I'm going back to the club!" Gemstone snapped. "See you at the bachelor party, you son-of-a-glitch!"

...

Thundercracker was lying flat on his back, his eyes shut tight, looking almost like he was in physical pain. Gemstone had left, just marched out the door. Now she was at the Decepticlub again, probably already 'facing with another mech, another idiot jerk Thundercracker would like to strangle alive. In fact, he was so distracted with this thought that he didn't even know Starscream had been staring at him.

"Why did Gemstone leave, Thundercracker?" Starscream whispered.

"Apparently she wanted to be a hooker again." Thundercracker's voice was stony and harsh, and he wouldn't look at Starscream.

"Why should it matter to you, TC?" Starscream asked. "Isn't she just your fake girlfriend?"

"Okay, I'll admit it," Thundercracker grumped. "We never did have a real relationship. It _was _all pretend. All we did was 'face a lot, sort of like friends with benefits—except now I don't have her as a friend _or _a benefit."

"So you can just forget about her," said Starscream.

"I never thought it would go this far." Thundercracker's voice cracked as he realized he was talking more to himself than to Starscream. "On the night we met, I just thought I'd 'face with her and go, but then we…we just…I don't know how it happened."

"_Isn't it my turn now, hon?" Thundercracker asked in his deep voice, and he spread her legs; she squealed at the sensation of his tongue in her southern regions; when he felt himself getting pressurized again he lifted her head up and drew her into a kiss. She grabbed for his spike and shoved it in by her own means, to which Thundercracker let out a yelp…a very pleasured yelp._

It was true. On that night, Thundercracker never thought he would see Gemstone again, and yet he had ended up bringing her home.

_Thundercracker completed his second overload and pulled out, then looked into Gemstone's gleaming eyes. She was a pearly white color, in contrast to the black-and-gold Moonbeam; she was not a Seeker and although she was attractive in a certain way, it was different than Moonbeam's kind of attractive. _

_Gemstone waited with a rather bewildered look on her face as Thundercracker's mind filled with thoughts of how it would be if he was doing this with Moonbeam instead of this hooker. The familiar feeling of the pressurization he could only get for her was coming back, and he asked, "Gemstone…would you mind it if I called you 'Moonbeam'?"_

Moonbeam. Thundercracker had called Gemstone "Moonbeam". Not by her real name. How demeaning had that must have felt—as though being forced into prostitution (and treated with no respect) wasn't enough. Gemstone's virginity had most likely been taken by someone whose face she had never seen, and he had paid for it. That mech, and all the others, were just sleazy jerks who didn't care.

Of course, Thundercracker had done the exact same thing that night. Maybe that didn't make him any different.

No wonder she had gotten so angry. So hurt.

"Thundercracker?" said Starscream. "Do you miss her?"

"Why would I miss her?" Thundercracker snapped. "It's like you said. She was only my fake girlfriend. Nothing else, ever."

"Maybe that's what your CPU is telling you," Starscream replied. "Your spark's telling you something completely different though, isn't it?"

"I'm not in love with her," Thundercracker insisted. "You're crazy, Screamer."

"Who do you think you're kidding, TC?" Starscream sat up in bed, and Thundercracker could see he was smirking. "I think _you_'_re _crazy. Crazy about Gemstone."

_That is SO stupid_, Thundercracker thought to himself. _I would rather be with Moonbeam any day_. _Gemstone is just a friend_…_or_, _she was_. _Until she left me_.

Tortured with thoughts, none of which he could comprehend, Thundercracker got no recharge that night.


	24. Night of the Party

**THAT WEEKEND…**

On the day of the bachelor party, Skywarp wasn't particularly excited. Really, he didn't care. All he wanted was to be with Moonbeam. The party was scheduled for tonight, and right now it was breakfast time. Skywarp was encouraging Megatron to take care of the sparklings more, so he could improve his parenting skills (or lack thereof).

Skywarp let Starscream sleep in for once while Megatron took care of the sparklings, with the purple jet as his guide.

"JUST DRINK YOUR NOURISHMENT!" Megatron was yelling, holding baby Megs in one hand. Baby Stars was, as usual, hovering in the air, making little squealing noises, and Megs was crying. Megatron looked exhausted, but he was trying to take care of the sparklings too.

"Now, now, don't yell at the sparklings," Skywarp soothed.

"This is impossible!" Megatron shouted. "When they need to feed, they cry. When they need recharge, they cry. When they are bored, they cry. When they want attention, they cry. When they are sick, they cry. No matter what, they are ALWAYS crying!"

"It's not that hard." Skywarp shrugged and smiled. "When they need to feed, feed them. When they need recharge, sing to them and put them down for their naps. When they're bored or need attention, play with them. When they're sick, give them medicine or take them to the medic so they feel better."

Megatron made a kind of grunting noise and started to feed Megs. Skywarp gently took Stars out of the air and fed him his bottle.

Meanwhile, Thundercracker had been at the table, too. Moonbeam was on call today, so she couldn't be with them, but Thundercracker was there. The thing was, he hadn't spoken, opened his eyes, or even lifted his head up off of the table. Skywarp and Megatron had been too busy taking care of the twins to really notice him. What they didn't know was, Thundercracker had never been so miserable in his life.

It was a huge loss, and he couldn't understand why; Gemstone was okay, but she was just a friend with benefits, a hooker _pretending _to be his girlfriend. Thundercracker wanted a _real _girlfriend, someone nice, pretty, funny, someone he could love forever and protect from harm.

Ever since Gemstone had left, Thundercracker felt like there was an empty place inside of his spark. _Why_? _Why_, _why_, _why_? It made no sense. All he knew was that he was all upset now, and felt almost like crying.

But no—Thundercracker did not cry…ever. Starscream seemed to have shed quite a few tears when he was carrying, and Skywarp wasn't the type to hold tears back in general, but Thundercracker _never _cried. In fact, he was used to bottling up every emotion, every emotion besides anger, that is. In his trine, he was a fighter, believing that there was no room for emotion in times of war.

Soon enough, Stars finished his bottle and started to drift into stasis. As Skywarp was rocking him, he looked at his brother, slumped on the table face-first, looking more depressed than he could ever remember.

"I'm sorry, Thundercracker," Skywarp whispered.

Thundercracker emitted a low grunting type of noise, but he didn't move his head or body. Skywarp noticed, though, how his wings were hanging low. This signified either fear or great sadness in a jet, and since Thundercracker didn't really have anything to fear that Skywarp could think of, he must have been very upset.

_Well_, _his girlfriend DID dump him a few days ago_, Skywarp thought, not knowing that the relationship between Thundercracker and Gemstone had been fake all along. _No wonder he_'_s so sad_.

"You loved her, TC, I know that," said Skywarp. "But you have to move on."

"Just leave me alone, 'Warp," Thundercracker mumbled; he wanted to be left alone with his confusion.

"Thundercracker, breaking up with someone is always hard." Skywarp put one hand on Thundercracker's drooping wing for comfort; it involuntarily twitched, but didn't go up again. "Remember, though, there are plenty of other femmes who could love you, too."

"Yeah? Like who?"

"Like…um…" Skywarp felt his face reddening. "Maybe you could meet one at the bachelor party tonight. You know, like at the Decepticlub."

"I don't want to pick up a femme at the Decepticlub," Thundercracker told him, remembering that he had met Gemstone that exact way…and look how well _that _had turned out. "I just want to be left alone, okay?"

"Okay," Skywarp mumbled, and turned away, knowing that his efforts to raise his brother's spirits were only in vain.

**THAT NIGHT…**

Thundercracker didn't want to go to the bachelor party, but Starscream (best mech) had forced him to. Gemstone, he insisted, was gone now and didn't matter. Just like all the other Decepticons, Thundercracker was entitled to a good time.

They flew to the Cybertronian Mechs' Club, all of the Decepticons except Moonbeam—as stated before, no femmes allowed (again, except for the entertainment). Apparently, it was "tradition".

When they got to the Decepticlub and had made it past the bouncer and everything, Thundercracker didn't step foot on the dance floor. All he did was halfheartedly join the other mechs at the bar, obviously wishing that this stupid "party" would just end already.

"Give me the strongest drink you have," Thundercracker mumbled to the bartender.

"At this club, we have energon so strong that it wasn't even legal in some Cybertronian cities," said the bartender. "Is everything okay?"

"Thundercracker's having trouble with the femmes," Starscream whispered.

"Those femmes," said the bartender, shaking his head and pouring a drink for Thundercracker. "They can bring you such misery, can't they?"

"I told you, Screamer, I'm not having trouble with the femmes," said Thundercracker. "I'm _not _in love with Gemstone, and I never was. Where is she, anyway? She said she would be here."

"Gemstone, you say?" said the bartender. "Do you mean the young hooker with the white paint job?"

Thundercracker shrugged. "I guess so."

"That femme's been gone for a long time," the bartender told them, "but she came back a few days ago. Didn't look the same as when she'd left…sort of angry. Depressed, like. Mechs were hitting on her and she accepted, but by Primus, her spark didn't seem to be into it."

"Why ever not?" Thundercracker grumbled. "I thought she'd sleep with any mech as long—as long as it wasn't me."

"Is that what she said?" Starscream asked.

"That's exactly what she said." Thundercracker's wings fell again. Glaring down at the floor, he refused to make eye contact with anyone.

"Anyway, what will you have, Mr. Starscream?" asked the bartender.

"Hmm…" Starscream tapped on his chin thoughtfully. "Whatever will get me high and is not nutritious in any way."

…

Skywarp was enjoying himself. The party was great fun, and he knew he would be marrying Moonbeam in a few months; he was on top of the world. Right now, he didn't know that Thundercracker was heartbroken. Right now, he was the future groom, and he was having a great party at the Cybertronian Mechs' Club.

"What are you so happy about?" asked the bartender, grinning.

"I'm getting married in a few months!" Skywarp cried out jovially. "This is my bachelor party!"

"This is your bachelor party?" the bartender repeated. "Well, why didn't you say so? Everything's on the house, friend."

"Thanks!" Skywarp beamed.

"I do think, though, that you are intoxicated enough," the bartender told him with a smirk.

Starscream, meanwhile, had ordered just the drink he wanted. By now, he was extremely high on an illegal brand of energon and shaking his tailpipe on the dance floor. Femmes gravitated towards him, of course, and he was dancing with them all. Starscream was a good dancer, and he was having a great amount of fun. (Of course, when you consume a ton of illegally high-grade energon, it doesn't take a lot to keep you entertained, but that was beside the point.)

As the night wore on, Thundercracker watched Megatron, Soundwave, Rumble, and Frenzy as they all drank at the bar. Skywarp, Starscream, and most of the other Decepticons were on the dance floor. At one point there might have been a Seeker conga line (led by Starscream), but Thundercracker wasn't paying too much attention.

That was when he saw a familiar pearly white figure in the background. The femme did a double take, turned away; Thundercracker put his head down too…until he heard her talking.

"I've got an announcement to make," Gemstone was saying smugly. "I will now be offering free sexual favors to all Seekers, _except_ those in the Command Trine."

The other Seekers scrambled up to Gemstone like moths drawn to a light. All she did was send a smirk in Thundercracker's direction. Thundercracker looked down at his feet, his wings still drooping, his eyes burning with unfamiliar tears.

…

Hours had passed, and the night still wasn't wearing down. Gemstone was no longer visible; Thundercracker thought that she was probably 'facing with another Seeker right now, maybe more than one at a time, or some mech he didn't even know. Which would be worse? What a horrible choice.

And that was when Thundercracker felt someone gently tap his wing. When he turned around, he saw that it was Gemstone. Unable to think of anything to say to her, Thundercracker just cleared his throat and looked down.

"Thundercracker?" Gemstone whispered. "Look at me."

Reluctantly, he lifted up his head to look at her; her facial expression was unusually serious.

"What is it?" Thundercracker mumbled.

"Listen, I…I want to apologize for the way I acted," Gemstone said quietly. "I just…I guess I was kind of mad about Moonbeam and everything and…I don't know. I don't remember."

"No, Gemstone, I'm sorry," Thundercracker told her, standing up and putting his strong hands on her shoulders. "I've been thinking, and I can't believe I ever had a 'fake' girlfriend. As far as I'm concerned, you either have a real girlfriend, or you have no girlfriend at all."

"Thank you, TC." Gemstone smiled. "That's how I feel, too. I know it looked like we had a sort of breakup, even though we were never together in the first place…but even if I'm not your fake girlfriend any more, I can still be your friend."

"Oh, Gemstone, baby, Gemstone." Thundercracker wrapped his arms around Gemstone and held her close. "It's so good to have you back."

"When I was 'facing with all those other Seekers," said Gemstone, "I missed you. I didn't miss being a hooker. I hated doing it again. I did it just to spite you and…I feel really bad."

"Don't," Thundercracker reassured her, and gave her another squeeze. "You did nothing wrong."

They separated, but still held each other's hands. They were amused to see, over by the bar, that pretty much all the other Decepticons had gotten themselves completely high. Starscream was even worse; by now he was literally sitting on Megatron's lap, his arms around the old mech's neck. Starscream was wearing a gold crown and giggling maniacally about something, and every so often Megatron (also intoxicated) would give him a little kiss or, more frequently, a hard slap on the aft. When this happened, Starscream would just giggle even louder. It was pretty embarrassing to Thundercracker, but also hilarious. Gemstone was laughing.

The others weren't much better. Soundwave was high now too, and he was hogging the dance floor, just like Starscream had been. Unfortunately, he had let Ravage loose too somehow, and before they knew it the bar patrons had to deal with a big black mechanical panther trying to attack anything it encountered.

Skywarp was the one leading the conga line now—somehow he had managed to get them all party hats and bead necklaces, which they wore as they danced. Starscream and Megatron, high beyond comprehension, were making out openly at the bar—now Gemstone's laughter had been replaced by a wide-eyed stare at them.

"I heard they hated each other," she said, sounding confused.

"They kind of have a bizarre relationship," Thundercracker explained. "Nobody understands it, not even them. _Especially _not them. Somehow, though, they make it work."

"Actually, I think having little twins brought them together somehow," Gemstone offered. "You know, because it's a common cause."

"Could be." Thundercracker shrugged. "Or maybe it was because nobody really knew for sure until Screamer got sparked up."

"I remember, when I first got to base, you told me you didn't know who the other parent was." Gemstone smirked. "The only reason I figured it out is because one of them looks exactly like Megatron…but why didn't you tell me in the first place?"

"Starscream was kind of embarrassed by it all," Thundercracker replied. "Like I said, whatever is between them is really weird, and I guess he didn't want any newcomers to know."

"Well, I can understand that," said Gemstone, smiling at Thundercracker; he felt his spark lift.

"I really am glad to have you back," Thundercracker told her, but then he felt his wings droop again. "I guess we'll have to stop our hot animal 'facing, though, since we aren't a fake couple any more."

"Who said anything about that?" Gemstone whispered flirtatiously. "In fact, do you want to know the _real _reason why I decided we should patch things up?"

"Why?" Thundercracker asked.

"I've slept with almost _all _the Seekers tonight, but…" Gemstone stroked Thundercracker's right wing and kissed his cheek. "After all of them, I still think you're the best. In fact, Thundercracker, I might offer free sexual favors to those in the Command Trine after all. Fake girlfriend discount."

To both his dismay and delight, Thundercracker felt his suddenly erect spike slam against his interface panel, threateningly close to coming out on its own. This femme was talented.

"Um, Gemstone?" said Thundercracker, his voice more little high-pitched than usual.

"What?" Gemstone smirked.

"I'm kind of…having a little…um, mech emergency," Thundercracker mumbled, cheeks reddening. "If you know what I mean."

"Oh, I know what you mean, TC." Gemstone teased by stroking his wings again and (when she was _sure _nobody else was looking) tickling him just a little on the interface panel, more than enough to get his spike to pop out.

"Please, hon, I'm dying," Thundercracker begged, trying to hold his release until they got out of public. It was kind of a burning, uncomfortable feeling. "You want to have some real fun?"

"Of course," said Gemstone, leading him out of the room.


	25. Autobot Educational Television

**DEAR READERS (YOU KNOW WHO YOU ARE!) – Sorry about the long wait. I was having technical difficulties, as you can see. However, everything's fixed now, and Chapter 25 ("Educational Television") is finally up! Read, review, and enjoy!**

After the bachelor party was over, everyone came home totally wasted on energon. By the time they got to base, Moonbeam was standing there with an old, crabby-looking femme bot. The unfamiliar femme was holding screaming Megs. Stars was also crying, but he was (as usual) hovering in the air.

"Nice going, guys," said Moonbeam, scowling at them all. "Since you left me all alone here to take care of Stars and Megs, I had to call my _mother _to come help me out."

Moonbeam's mother stomped up to Starscream and cuffed him on the cheek. "You'd do well to teach those sparklings of yours some manners, young man! Why, back in my day, we didn't cry, no, because we had VALUES in those days, and—"

"Mom, please stop," Moonbeam groaned. "Nobody wants to hear about 'values', okay? They're _newborn sparklings_. Of course they cry."

"I know how sparklings act!" Moonbeam's mother snapped. "Oh, dear Primus forbid I should try to enlighten my own DAUGHTER with some ELDERLY WISDOM, but NO, why don't I just go bury myself in a hole somewhere and rust? Would that make you happy, missy? Huh? Would it? Would it?"

"_No_, Mom, of course it—"

"Don't you interrupt me, missy!" said Moonbeam's mother. "You think I'm just some old, nagging hag, don't you? Well, it was from bearing _all these children_, that's how, while your lazy-aft father could hardly be bothered to dispose of expired energon!"

"Hey!" Starscream said unsteadily, clinging to Megatron's arm for balance. "MY twins' father doesn't do anything either!"

"Except you only have two!" Moonbeam's mother shot back. "I had EIGHT, including her! Five femmes and three mechs! And you're _on _something, aren't you, young man? Did you have high-grade tonight?"

"Mom, he's NOT your son!" Moonbeam cut in.

"You hush up," Moonbeam's mother told her daughter, and then she turned to Skywarp. "Young man, when you spark my daughter up, they'll have to be better behaved than the little brats I had to take care of tonight! And I expect you to produce at least six grandchildren!"

Moonbeam sighed and rolled her eyes. "Skywarp and I aren't even—"

"I thought I told you to hush up, missy," said Moonbeam's mother. "And you better not have spread your legs for this mech yet. You know what I told you and your sisters, save your valve for when you're married."

"_Mom_!" Moonbeam cried. Even she was blushing now.

"Is that all the femmes of today do? Get themselves violated?" Moonbeam's mother waved her hands in the air dramatically and pointed at Skywarp again. "_You_ didn't violate my daughter, _did_ you, young man?"

Thundercracker and Starscream were very amused.

"Skywarp violates her all the _time_." Starscream laughed.

"Yeah, he's always telling us about how he gets triple overload from her," Thundercracker added.

"Is this true?!" Moonbeam's mother cried, then clapped her hands over her mouth.

"Well, look who's talking!" Moonbeam shot back. "Starscream had S&M 'facing with Megatron and you sparkling-sat the misbehaved byproducts tonight. And even though Thundercracker broke up with his slutty hooker ex-girlfriend, you two are still friends with benefits, aren't you?"

"What is this world _coming_ to?" Moonbeam's mother cried. "Moonbeam, I did not raise you to act this way! Not one bit!"

"Starscream and his brothers are correct, ma'am," Gemstone said. "Moonbeam _is_ a bitch-whore."

"Oh, yeah, like your record's _so _clean, Gemstone," Moonbeam said sarcastically. "You're a _prostitute_, for crying out loud."

"She's a _what_?!" Moonbeam's mother screeched.

"That's right, Mom," Moonbeam said smugly. "This little slut used to live in Kaon and charge mechs to 'face with her for a living. Now that she's come to Earth, she lives at the Cybertronian Mechs' Club and does the same thing. Plus, we just found out that she's sparked up, and we have no idea who the father is."

"What the—I'm not going to have a sparkling!" Gemstone cried.

"I have no respect for prostitutes," said Moonbeam's mother. "You couldn't be a mother."

"But I'm not sparked!" Gemstone insisted.

"Gemstone's not a prostitute any more," said Thundercracker. "She's my friend. And she lives with us, not at the Cybertronian Mechs' Club."

"Is it your sparkling, then?" Moonbeam's mother snapped.

"She's NOT going to have a sparkling," Thundercracker replied. "So it's nobody's."

"It's true," said Starscream. "Moonbeam was just trying to make Gemstone look bad."

"I'm no happier with you, young man." Moonbeam's mother turned to Starscream. "Shame on you for spreading your legs for your boss! Are you trying to get a promotion?"

"Oh, he wants a promotion, all right," said Megatron a little drunkenly, "but he's got to kill me for that! We do the 'facing just for fun."

"I must say, Moonbeam, I'm not quite approving of the society you are marrying into," Moonbeam's mother told her daughter crisply. "I thought when I met the Decepticon leader, he would be less intoxicated."

"Hey, the Decepticon leader can get drunk if he wants," said Starscream, pointing at himself.

"She meant _me_, not you," said Megatron.

"Prove it," said Starscream.

"Moonbeam, I'm your mother," said Moonbeam's mother. "And I say that only when you marry this mech can you know him intimately. Do you want to have 'accidents', like Starscream did?"

"Mom, it was nice of you to sparkling-sit, but you can go home now, okay?" said Moonbeam.

"That's all you want, isn't it?" Moonbeam's mother repeated. "All right, then! I can tell when I'm not wanted! Don't bother to thank me! I'm going!"

Of course, Moonbeam was a purebred, which meant her mother was a Seeker too, albeit a quite old and wore-out one. Before they knew it she had turned herself into a jet and soared into the sky…away from them.

"Sorry about that," Moonbeam told Skywarp apologetically. "My mother can be a prude. In fact, I was 'facing with mechs when I was still in Seeker school, and she _never _knew."

"Why didn't she want you to 'face?" asked Thundercracker. "Our parents were fine with it."

"Seekers are _supposed _to want to do it," Starscream added. "It's part of our natural programming."

"Well, I came from a very traditional family," Moonbeam explained. "The jets' natural reproductive instinct was something we were taught to suppress, especially the femmes, me and my four sisters. Whenever one of us brought a mech home—and we tried it a _lot_—our father would always try to intimidate him until he went away."

"So if it's bad to want sparklings, why do you have seven siblings?" Skywarp asked.

"It's not the urge to have sparklings that was discouraged," Moonbeam told him, rolling her eyes. "Interface was only forbidden when it was purely recreational. You heard my mother—I should save my valve for when I'm married, but once I _am _married, fire away. She wants you to give her at least six grandchildren."

"Can you have six?" Skywarp asked. "I mean, I know your mom had eight, but…"

"It depends on two things: how fertile you are, and your frame design," Moonbeam replied. "There are some Cybertronians who can't carry even one sparkling, and some, like my mom, can have eight. It's hard to tell with a jet because we tend to be quite fertile, but we're also lightweights, which makes flying easier but makes carrying much harder."

"Well, I would love to have a big family," Skywarp told her.

"Remember what we talked about, Skywarp?" said Moonbeam. "For now, it's just the two of us."

Skywarp shrugged, and they all went inside.

**THAT MORNING…**

Thundercracker woke to a very strange sensation…a very _good _strange sensation. For some reason, he had awoken fully erect and he had a wonderful feeling down there; he looked and—

Gemstone had decided to awaken him by sucking his spike?! Awesome!

"Keep doing what you're doing, hon," he moaned, automatically spreading his legs further apart as Gemstone fought back her giggle fit. To Thundercracker's delight, Gemstone finished the blow job and let him release; after the eruption (so to speak), he collapsed onto the bed with a sigh of happiness.

"Did it feel good?" Gemstone whispered, running her fingers up and down his wings.

"YES," said Thundercracker—one hundred percent sincerely. "What are you doing in my room?"

"Oh, I thought I'd join you this morning," said Gemstone. "Moonbeam's with the sparklings already in the main monitor room. They're watching this TV show her mother introduced to them on one of the Autobot channels. 'Grimlock the Purple Dinobot', I think it was called."

"Why are they watching one of the Autobot channels?" Thundercracker asked. "And why are they watching a show about the Dinobots?"

"Well, none of the Decepticon channels have sparklings' shows," Gemstone explained. "Apparently, Grimlock's show is 'educational'."

"What do they learn about?" Thundercracker was now curious.

"Hmm…I actually don't remember." Gemstone looked pensive as she mulled over it. "Come on, let's go see."

Thundercracker put his spike back into its housing and closed the chamber, then grabbed her hand. Together, they headed to the main monitor room.

Sure enough, Megs and Stars were parked in front of the TV—well, Megs was. Of course, they were too young to know how to sit up, but Megs was lying on his front, and Stars was, of course, hovering in the air. They both had pacifiers in their mouths, and apparently they had already had their bottles. On screen, Grimlock (painted purple) and all the _other _Dinobots were learning about sharing or friendship or something else stupid that Autobot sparklings learned.

Everyone else was hung over and still in bed, so the main monitor room was empty except for Moonbeam, the twins, and Skywarp. Skywarp was hung over too, of course, but he wanted to help Moonbeam. Thundercracker looked at the screen.

"What time is it, kids?" the announcer was saying.

"IT'S GRIMLOCK TIME!" the invisible background audience hollered.

"That's right, kids, it's Grimlock time!" said Dinobot Grimlock. Thundercracker wondered why he was talking in complete sentences all of a sudden, until he realized that the voice actually belonged to Wheeljack (who built the Dinobots), and Grimlock was just lip-syncing badly.

"Today on _Grimlock the Purple Dinobot_," said the announcer, "we have a SPECIAL SURPRISE GUEST! None other than…OPTIMUS PRIME, LEADER OF THE AUTOBOTS!"

"Ohhh…" said the invisible background audience.

"Today's special episode is called 'Decepticon Bumblebee Sees the Light','" said Grimlock/Wheeljack.

Seconds later, Optimus Prime joined Grimlock onstage, along with what appeared to be Bumblebee, possibly in a poorly designed Decepticon costume. Basically, he looked the same, except he had on fake red optic lenses and a Decepticon sticker over the place where his Autobot sticker usually was.

"What's today's episode about, Optimus?" Grimlock asked.

"Well, when I kicked Megatron's aft in our battle yesterday, I captured one of his Decepticons, Bumblebee," Optimus told everyone. "I was going to interrogate him at first and make him tell me all the Decepticons' secrets…but then I thought that maybe I could make a DIFFERENCE instead and SAVE THE WORLD!"

"What do you mean?" asked Grimlock.

"I talked about peace, love and friendship with him," Optimus explained. "Now, he wants to become an Autobot! You see, kids, instead of opening more prisons, we should open more sparks. Maybe someday, ALL the Decepticons will See the Light, and the Decepticons will be no more."

"Optimus is right!" said Bumblebee, taking off the sticker and the red optic lenses. "I want to be an Autobot now!"

"Come on, everyone!" said Optimus. "Let's sing our Sharing and Love song!"

"What the—what _is _this?!" Thundercracker hollered. Appalled at what his nephews were watching, he picked up the remote and turned on one of the Decepticon channels.

Unfortunately, something else was on that sparklings shouldn't be watching—apparently, _this_ channel regularly displayed porn flicks.

"Oh, _oh_," some femme was moaning pleasurably. "Shove your big fat spike into my soaking wet valve!"

"Open wide, baby," said her mech's voice. "Let me feel your OVERLOAD!"

"Just enjoy," another femme cooed, and then the threesome really took off.

"What are the sparklings _watching_?" Skywarp cried. "Is that _pornography_?! Thundercracker, turn that off!"

Thundercracker wanted to see what was going to happen (nobody knew this, but sometimes he taped porn flicks and watched them by himself, just for the fun of it), but there were innocent eyes watching, so he quickly turned the TV off.

"Thank you," said Skywarp.

"At least they aren't watching 'Grimlock the Purple Dinobot'," Thundercracker said back. "No wonder the Autobots are so messed up if that's what their sparklings watch."

"You've got to admit, he has a point," said Moonbeam.

At that point, Megatron and Starscream walked into the room. Both of them were, of course, hung over from all the energon they had consumed at the bachelor party last night, but at least they were downstairs.

"What's going on?" Starscream asked groggily.

"The sparklings were watching this stupid Autobot educational show called 'Grimlock the Purple Dinobot'," Thundercracker told him. "So I turned on a Decepticon channel, but it was showing a porn flick. So we turned the TV off."

"I wish they could watch _Autobot Air Force_," Starscream said. "That was my favorite show when I was younger."

"Oh yeah, I remember _Autobot Air Force_." Thundercracker grinned. "I think that was every Seeker's favorite show, growing up. Did you watch it, Moonbeam?"

"Sometimes with my brothers," said Moonbeam. "My sisters and I were more into _My Secret Life as a Femme Seeker_."

"Yuck, that annoying show was way too girly for me," said Thundercracker. "What was it even about, anyway?"

"It was a _great_ show about a defiant young femme trying to survive in Seeker school, dealing drama involving 'dreamy' mechs, peer pressure, substance abuse, accidental pregnancies, etc.," Moonbeam told them haughtily.

"Kind of like the PG-13 equivalent of _Seeker Daily Drama_," Starscream explained.

"Well, that show doesn't sound all that interesting," said Megatron pensively. "I've never heard of _Autobot Air Force_, though. What's it about?"

"It was my favorite show as a sparkling, and my brothers', too," said Starscream. "It was about this group of Seekers who lived to irritate the Autobots, and were never caught. One of them lived on the team as a spy, pretending he had 'Seen the Light', and he always tipped his team off about important missions and technology and stuff. It was funny, and there was a lot of action too. In a way, it was educational, because it taught Seekers about, well, being Seekers."

"It was much better than that weenie scrap you see on _Grimlock the Purple Dinobot_," Thundercracker agreed scornfully.

"You know, _Autobot Air Force _was taken off the air millions of years ago, about the time when we graduated Seeker School," said Starscream. "I think I might have a tape of it somewhere, though. Then the little twins can watch it too."

Skywarp nodded in agreement. "If they're going to be watching educational television, they should at least be watching things they need to learn."


	26. Bedtime

**BEWARE: Very graphic chapter ahead! Have fun!**

Skywarp was more excited than ever about the wedding. Of course, he was sure that they would be spending the rest of their lives together, and that was what mattered. Moonbeam had called her four sisters to be bridesmaids—her older sister as maid of honor, and her younger three as the rest of the bridesmaids. Skywarp chose Starscream as best mech, and as for the rest of the Groom Posse, he had recruited Thundercracker and Moonbeam's three brothers.

Late one night, Skywarp and Moonbeam lay in the guest room (where they resided); Skywarp had Moonbeam wrapped up in his arms.

"I couldn't think of a better fiancée to be engaged to, kissy-wissy," Skywarp whispered.

"Thank you, sugar daddy," Moonbeam whispered back, lifting up her finger, upon which the diamond ring still shone in the moonlight. It was as almost as beautiful as the femme who wore it.

"You're welcome," said Skywarp. "I chose the best ring I could find…for the best femme in the universe."

**MEANWHILE…**

Starscream awoke from his sleep to a disturbing sort of noise. At first he thought it was just the little twins again, calling out for his attention, but it was more of a deep, moaning noise, accompanied by girlish giggles.

Yes…when he thought Starscream was asleep, Thundercracker had brought Gemstone into the Seekers' room. Unbelievable.

Of course, he didn't really want to "watch" or anything, but Starscream found it kind of hard to look away. Every time Gemstone ran her hand down Thundercracker's wings, he shivered a little and moaned with pleasure. When she stuck her hand under the sheets, he moaned even louder, the kind of moan that was only associated with either sexual ecstasy or extreme physical pain.

"Enter me, TC," Gemstone was cooing. Thundercracker grunted and Starscream heard Gemstone shriek as her mate penetrated. This was _so _annoying. Starscream didn't care _what _Thundercracker said—Gemstone was NOT just a friend! They were in love, and Thundercracker was just too dumb to notice it. All he realized was that he liked the 'facing.

Starscream groaned with frustration and placed his pillow over his head, trying to block out the sounds of a steamy interface session.

"Harder, hon!" Thundercracker cried. "Faster!"

"Oh, your spike is so _big_," Gemstone whispered. "Ahh…stretch that valve…oh!"

Starscream heard Thundercracker growl with affection and mumble something equally inappropriate about _her_ body, but he was trying not to listen. However, he knew that telling them to stop wouldn't be a good idea. It would only cause a whole lot of awkwardness for everyone. No…Starscream would just have to wait it out…

"Baby, you're _so _tight!" Thundercracker sounded pretty pleasured too. "I'm gonna come!"

"Please do," Gemstone encouraged him, and let out a happy sigh.

It was obvious that Gemstone was thrusting harder and harder, getting herself and Thundercracker all riled up, when he heard Thundercracker's howl—his overload had come. Gemstone squealed and hers came soon after.

"You're a good friend," Thundercracker told her, wrapping his arms around her protectively.

"And I come with lots of benefits," she cooed, and stuck her hand under the sheets again. "What's this? Oh, TC, you aren't starting to pressurize _again_…are you?"

"You really are a pro," he told her passionately as his wings twitched a little. "I've never had so many erections for one femme in my life."

_Is that all he can THINK about_? Starscream was exasperated by horny Thundercracker as he heard them start another session, with Gemstone on the top again, grabbing his shoulders and setting a fast pace.

Starscream groaned again and sat up in bed. Maybe he could take one 'facing session, but he didn't want to hear their overloads again tonight. So, when they weren't looking, he slipped quietly out of bed and walked down the hall to Megatron's room. The door was locked, but Starscream knocked until the tired Megatron opened the door.

"What do you want, Starscream?" he mumbled.

"Well, Thundercracker is fragging Gemstone in my room and I can't stand it any more," Starscream replied. "So I was wondering if I could come in here and, y'know, cuddle a little or something."

"Megatron does not cuddle," said Megatron angrily.

"Why do you always talk in third person?" asked Starscream cheekily, making his usually shrill voice deep and imitating his boss. "Megatron knows no fear. Megatron does not cuddle. Megatron takes orders from no one. Megatron—"

"All right, I get it," Megatron snapped. "But what makes you think I want to cuddle?"

"Well, maybe…" Starscream sidled up against Megatron and nuzzled his cheek. "Maybe we can turn it into a little something more."

"I guess so," Megatron grunted, and took Starscream's hand, slowly leading him inside.

Megatron's suite was much better than the Seekers' room. The bed was large and luxurious, and the room didn't smell funny, either. Starscream had discovered that sparklings didn't usually smell so good, mostly because they seemed to enjoy throwing up and lubricating whenever (and wherever) they wanted to.

Once they got in bed, Megatron took Starscream into his arms with a surprising amount of affection. Starscream snuggled into him.

"I don't really hate you, Megatron," Starscream whined, feeling almost surreal.

"Don't worry, Starscream, I don't hate you either," said Megatron, wrapping his arms around his lover. Starscream used to fear Megatron; now he felt safe. For some reason he felt a little shy when Megatron stuck one hand in between his legs. What had Thundercracker said to Gemstone about being "tight"?

"I-I don't think I'm as tight as I was," Starscream admitted, feeling a little insecure, hoping he could still please Megatron. "Y'know, ever since I had sparklings."

"Of course not," said Megatron. "That's normal. But I think I should still be able to fill you up, being so well-endowed and all."

Starscream felt that familiar swelling feeling in his interface panel and spread his legs apart. Megatron knelt on all fours then lifted up both of Starscream's legs, placing them on his shoulders.

"You…you don't have the handcuffs, Master," Starscream pointed out, noticing this for the first time.

"It's okay," Megatron whispered, then flipped Starscream's interface hatch open. "Mm…a tad wet, aren't we?"

Actually, that was a bit of an understatement. Starscream was soaked. One breathy gasp escaped his lips when, instead of penetration, he felt someone's tongue roaming around down there, setting his systems on fire. Megatron grabbed Starscream's feet and Starscream held back, well, another scream.

"Oh, it's—it's wonderful," Starscream moaned, feeling his spike getting as hard as a rock. Just as Starscream felt himself involuntarily approaching release, Megatron stopped his licking and, with his most devious smile, released his own spike, already fully erect and even huger than usual. Yeah, he was Megatron, and everything was huge when it came to Megatron, but, well…_still_.

Primus, did Starscream want that spike inside of him right now. Just the feeling of his valve being stretched to the perfect amount by a special slag buddy was turning him on even more. Megatron gave no warning, and—

Starscream made a little hybrid gasp-whine as he felt his Master shove his spike inside him, nice and deep. Yes, Megatron was certainly able to fill Starscream up comfortably, spicily, hotly, AMAZINGLY. It was fast and hard and it burned with delicious pain and fiery passion. That was the good thing about 'facing with Megatron—it was all raw animal interface, with no regard for feelings, timeliness, or excess bodily fluids painting the bedsheets.

Megatron was the first and only mech Starscream had ever 'faced with. Femmes were great, but it felt…_different _with Megatron. That first time, that was the only time he had ever bled during 'facing, or felt any pain…but he _liked _feeling pain, he'd discovered. Well, when he was doing the deed with Megatron, anyway. Although Megatron had become gentler with Starscream since then, they had both enjoyed the S&M, especially with a clear definition of who played the dominant and submissive roles. Starscream's initial fascination with Megatron morphed into something new, something special.

The transfluid that filled Starscream up was warm, tingling. It seemed to fill not just his valve but his spark as well. Starscream gasped again as he felt his own release and Megatron took his lover into his arms protectively, using one hand to stroke his spike. Starscream adjusted his hips to the position and held Megatron's hand there, to make sure the good feeling didn't leave.

"Megatron?" asked Starscream, his voice high-pitched and needy-sounding.

"What?" Megatron whispered, his fingers not leaving Starscream's southern regions.

"Can I stay with you at night again?" Starscream stared up at Megatron with pleading red eyes,

Already, he could feel another erection coming on. Was this how Thundercracker felt whenever he got Gemstone into bed with him? Was that why they were never able to control themselves?

"Why, of course you can," Megatron replied, smirking as he felt Starscream getting hard again—and more than a little wet. "You can stay as much as you like."


	27. Gobsmacked

**APPROXIMATELY ONE WEEK LATER…**

"Gemstone and Thundercracker have agreed to watch the little twins," said Skywarp, approaching Starscream. "Moonbeam's on call today, so do you want to go flying with me?"

"Sure," said Starscream. "That would be great."

So they took to the skies and engaged in their favorite activity—flying. Skywarp was thinking about Moonbeam, of course, and mostly about his wedding. It wouldn't have to be anything big—he just wanted good family and friends, and of course his lovely bride. Although most of the Decepticons thought otherwise, Skywarp was convinced that Moonbeam could do no wrong.

Meanwhile, Starscream was thinking about the wedding too. For some reason, as he watched Skywarp demonstrating his flying skills, he had a very bad feeling. Sure, he was happy for his brother, but something didn't feel right, like something was going to happen to ruin the wedding.

_You_'_re just being paranoid_, Starscream reassured himself. _NOTHING is going to happen_!

Skywarp was still thinking about Moonbeam, his lovely Moonbeam, his bride. For the rest of their lives they would be happy together, the perfect couple. They had been through some very rocky times, it was true, but that didn't matter. Their love had changed, shifted, explored past boundaries, but it had never disappeared.

Unfortunately, since he was so busy thinking about Moonbeam, Skywarp stopped focusing on flying and wiped out.

"Are you okay?" asked Starscream, turning to robot mode as he landed too.

"Yeah." Skywarp got up and dusted himself off, then laughed. "I guess I didn't have my mind completely on flying. I was thinking about Moonbeam again!"

"Of course you were," said Starscream. "What else?"

"Anyway, I think my wing got a little scratched." Skywarp rubbed one black wing feverishly. Starscream couldn't see any scratch; this was probably just an excuse to go to the med bay and see Moonbeam.

"Sure you do," said Starscream, smirking. "Better go and ask Moonbeam to fix it. You know, maybe she could massage your wings or something."

Skywarp blushed a little and rubbed his face with his hands. Starscream was sure he was already getting an erection just thinking of that possibility. Starscream gave him the thumbs-up and they both went back into base. Starscream headed for the main monitor room to watch TV, while Skywarp headed for the med bay.

And that was when it happened. When he saw it.

It was almost like a dream, more like a nightmare. Skywarp let out a gasp but he couldn't make words; he sunk to the ground in silent despair.

There was Moonbeam, lying down on the repair table as she sloppily made out with Sunstorm, stroking his yellow-orange wings and giggling in between the kisses; she hadn't even noticed Skywarp yet. Not only that, Acid Storm was there too, and the three of them were doing a lot more than kissing.

Moonbeam's feet were on Acid Storm's shoulders and he was deep inside her, while Sunstorm made out with her, running his hands over the most influential parts of her body. Unfortunately, Skywarp had to witness the climax, Moonbeam's shrieks of delight filling the med bay, along with the other two Seekers' moans of satisfaction. Although they were soaked in various bodily fluids, they continued to make out furiously—until Moonbeam noticed someone else in the room, in the doorway, collapsed onto his knees, his face in his hands.

"_Skywarp_?!" Moonbeam cried, tumbling off the repair table and onto the floor. "What are you doing here?"

"I came to visit you while you were on call," Skywarp said tearfully, hoisting himself up. "But I guess Sunstorm and Acid Storm beat me to it."

"Wait, sugar daddy, this isn't what it looks like!" Moonbeam blurted out, waving her hand in the general direction of the other two.

"What is it then?!" Skywarp cried, pointing. "Tell me what you see here!"

"Well, um, it's…" Moonbeam shrugged and stared down at her feet. "It's a three-way."

"Is this the first time you've done this?" Skywarp demanded.

"Do you want me to say it's the first time it's happened?" Moonbeam asked. "Or do you want me to tell you the truth?"

"I want you to tell me the truth," Skywarp snapped, turning around so she wouldn't see how hurt he was. "That's what I _need_."

"Listen, sugar daddy, I didn't—"

Skywarp spun around suddenly and cut her off, tears in his eyes. "How long were you planning on doing this?"

Moonbeam just shrugged again, not saying anything.

"Tell me!" Skywarp cried.

"Okay, I'll admit it." Moonbeam shook her head and sighed. "I _did _'face with other Seekers…mainly Acid Storm and Sunstorm, as you can see."

"Moonbeam, if you didn't want to be with me, you could have just said so!" Skywarp told her. "Why did you need to cheat on me like that? Why did I have to catch you in the act?"

"It's purely sexual!" Moonbeam insisted.

"Oh, like that makes it any better!" Skywarp shouted. "How could you have done this to me? I loved you! We were to be married! How could you _do _this to me? Don't you care at _all_?"

"Sure I care!" she said. "It's just…I guess I didn't take the relationship as seriously as you did."

"What do you mean?!" Skywarp asked her faintly.

"I mean, I wasn't really thinking about the future so much," Moonbeam replied. "You and I did lots of things together, you got me a lot of presents, that ring was really expensive and beautiful and everything, it was fun and all, but…maybe we rushed into it. I don't think I'm ready for a wedding after all, much less a marriage."

"This is _it_, Moonbeam!" Skywarp cried. "You have crossed the line!"

"Crossed the what?" Moonbeam looked a little confused.

"I said you have crossed the line!" Skywarp repeated. "I was wrong about you. As of now, this relationship is OVER—for good!"

Before Moonbeam could say anything back, Skywarp put his hands over his face again and raced from the room, leaving her standing there, Acid Storm and Sunstorm still on the repair table, staring wide-eyed.

…

Starscream was on his bed, alone, flipping through an out-of-date issue of _Decepticon Weekly_. Gemstone and Thundercracker were babysitting the little twins, and Starscream was enjoying some alone time—but all that changed when Skywarp burst into the room, his eyes streaming with tears. As soon as he got in, he slammed the door and collapsed onto his bed, sobbing too hard to speak.

"Skywarp?" Starscream put the magazine down and walked over to his brother. "What the slag happened? Skywarp!"

Still no words. Just sadness, great sadness.

"Please, Skywarp, what happened?" Starscream begged. "Did something happen to Moonbeam?"

All Skywarp did was cry even harder.

Starscream tried to calm Skywarp down by helplessly stroking his drooping wings, which shook as he wept. Starscream was confounded—what could possibly have happened to make Skywarp this upset?

Skywarp kept crying, and Starscream kept trying to soothe him (unsuccessfully). Several minutes later, Thundercracker and Gemstone entered the room. Gemstone was holding Megs, and Stars was hovering in the air behind them. They were smiling at first, but their expressions turned to confusion and shock as they witnessed poor Skywarp.

"What happened?" Gemstone asked worriedly.

"I don't know," Starscream told her. "I was just sitting here, and then he comes in and starts crying, and he won't tell me what happened. I know it must have been something horrible, though."

"You think?" said Thundercracker, sitting down next to Starscream on Skywarp's bed. Gemstone sat down too, clinging to Thundercracker's arm.

Starscream continued to rub Skywarp's wings, and Gemstone stroked his helmet. Thundercracker pulled him into a sitting position.

"Tell us what happened," Gemstone whispered, giving Skywarp a hug. "Maybe we can help."

"N-No," said Skywarp tearfully, shaking his head, his hands still over his face. "Nothing can ever fix this."

"Nothing can ever fix _what_?" Starscream asked, giving the purple jet a nudge.

Skywarp took a deep breath and, in between sobs, told them everything.

"That _bitch_!" Gemstone cried. Everyone looked shocked, but she looked pretty angry too. "And she calls _me _a slut!"

"Oh, Skywarp," said Starscream, giving him a little hug. Skywarp leaned into him, limp as a wet blanket hung out to dry. Of course, he was still crying. Everyone was trying to comfort him, but nothing worked.

"You were right, Starscream!" Skywarp wailed. "Moonbeam _wasn_'_t _good for me! I don't know why I didn't see it! How did I not see it?"

"I was hoping I was wrong, 'Warp," Starscream told him helplessly. "Usually I don't like being proven wrong, but if only Moonbeam wasn't as terrible as a girlfriend as I thought she was…"

"Listen, guys, I _loved _her!" Skywarp still wouldn't take his hands off his face. "I've never loved anyone before in my whole entire life!"

"Moonbeam is poison," Gemstone insisted. "Believe me, she is _bad news_. Nothing good can possibly come of hanging out with her. I hope you dumped that bitch. Primus forbid you're still marrying her. You aren't…_are _you?"

"I never want to see that femme again in my life!" Skywarp wailed, and burst into tears yet again.

The sparklings, perhaps sensing Skywarp's agony, started to cry too. Stars descended out of the air and landed on the bed (still in robot mode) as he and his brother kept crying. Thundercracker held Megs, Starscream held Stars, and Gemstone hugged Skywarp like a carrier holds a newborn sparkling, trying to calm him down.

"I'll make sure she leaves," said Starscream, rocking Stars as he tried to get him to shut up.

"Definitely," said Gemstone. "Tomorrow, we're going to kick that bitch-whore _out_."

"Good." Skywarp sniffed. "Good."

**TO BE CONTINUED…**


	28. Justice

**THAT NEXT MORNING…**

Skywarp stayed in bed that morning. Really, that was all he wanted to do…but Starscream and Thundercracker both had other plans. It was bright and sunny, which seemed quite unfitting, and they weren't going to lay in bed all day long; they had to carry out their plans, rain or shine.

Moonbeam was in the main monitor room, watching the Seeker channel and snacking on some miniature energon cubes. As soon as Starscream got there, he stomped over to the couch, hoisted her up, and said, "Get out!"

"_What _did you say?" Moonbeam looked shocked.

"Which word don't you understand?" Starscream said back. "Get OUT! Out of base!"

"You can't kick me out," Moonbeam replied, crossing her arms and turning her nose up in the air.

"Actually, I _can_," Starscream snapped. "As you _should_ know, I might not yet lead the Decepticons, but I do lead the Seekers, so I can kick out whoever I want. And I say you should leave right now!"

"Who cares?" Moonbeam challenged him. "You're not a _leader_, you're a slagging MORON!"

"An insult!" Starscream yelled, grabbing her shoulder. "Why, I oughtta—"

"I'll take it from here, Starscream," they heard a confident voice behind them say, and before they knew it, Moonbeam had taken a blunt punch to the faceplates that sent her skidding across the floor and into the wall.

"Gemstone?" asked Thundercracker, his eyebrows raised.

"I don't think I like the way you treated Skywarp," Gemstone said sharply. "You don't deserve to live here with us."

"How dare you!" Moonbeam cried, trying to sound threatening, but her eyes were still tearing up with pain from Gemstone's punch.

"Oh, I dare, all right." Gemstone smirked. "I won't let you do mean things to nice mechs like Skywarp."

"You remember what I said about being the Air Commander, don't you, Moonbeam?" Starscream asked. "How you have to leave now…because I said so?"

"It doesn't matter if you're the Air Commander!" Moonbeam insisted. "Megatron can still override what you want to do."

"I can," they heard a voice behind them say, "but I won't."

"Megatron?" said Moonbeam.

"I've decided it would be in everyone's best interest if you left right now," Megatron repeated. "You will go willingly, or you will go by force, but either way, you are no longer welcome here."

"It seems as though the one who makes the final decisions has told you what to do," said Gemstone. "So now you have to do it."

"Actually, speaking of orders, Gemstone, I have a proposition for you," said Megatron.

"You…you what?" Gemstone looked curious.

"Over the months that you have stayed with us, I have observed strength and intelligence in you, and most notably the fact that you fight with neither mercy nor honor," Megatron explained. "So if you choose to accept it, you may join our ranks."

"Officially?" Gemstone gasped.

"If you prove yourself worthy during your enlistment, then yes," said Megatron, sticking out his hand. "Have we got a deal?"

"Um, w-well, this is just, I-I don't…" Gemstone was stammering. Megatron's power to instill fear was definitely making her nervous, even though he wasn't actually threatening her.

"What are you waiting for?" Thundercracker whispered. "Shake his hand!"

"Do you accept?" Megatron repeated.

"Oh, of course, Mr. Megatron," Gemstone said, breathlessly shaking Megatron's hand, although she still looked a little frightened, not to mention shocked—she was finally going to become a real Decepticon.

"Now, I need to know, what is your alt. mode?" asked Megatron. "You haven't transformed from robot mode _once_ yet, at least not that I've seen."

"She's ashamed of it," Moonbeam called from down on the floor. "It's probably something totally stupid."

"I'm a car, bitch," Gemstone told her. "And if you have any complaints about it, we can go settle it outside."

Moonbeam's eyes flashed red again, but this time it was with fear, not anger; instead of accepting the challenge, she just shook her head and shrunk back into the wall.

"You're a car?" asked Starscream. "How did that happen?"

"My father was a Decepticon, but my mother was an Autobot, and they usually turn into land-based vehicles," Gemstone explained, shrugging. "So I guess I inherited that from her. Not that a car would be my first choice, but…it's who I am, right? It's high time I learn to accept it."

"Not necessarily," Starscream told her. "If you don't like being a car, you can scan a different object and turn into that instead."

"What would I scan, though?" Gemstone tapped on her chin, looking thoughtful. "What if I…"

"What if you what?" Starscream asked.

"I just thought maybe I could be a gun like Megatron is," Gemstone said, blushing a little. "I mean, if he doesn't mind. Maybe it'd go well with my new image, y'know?"

"That wouldn't be so bad," said Megatron. "No offense, but it's certainly better than any vehicle that resembles an Autobot alt. mode. We can help you with your new alt. mode later, today if we can."

"Great news!" Gemstone grinned.

There was silence for a moment or two, then Thundercracker swallowed, looking uncharacteristically nervous, almost shy.

"Speaking of news," he said slowly and carefully, "seeing as Skywarp and Moonbeam aren't dating any more, there's something I've wanted to say to someone I've loved for a long time."

_No_, _Thundercracker_, _NO_! Starscream was screaming inside his head. _For spark_'_s sake_, _don_'_t get any ideas_!

Thundercracker bent down to the ground and gently held the hand of the femme he loved.

"Gemstone," he whispered. "Will you accept my courtship?"

Starscream shouldn't have been surprised, but he felt his jaw drop in surprise anyway as he heard Gemstone's squeal of happiness.

"Oh, Thundercracker!" she cried. "You don't know how long I've been waiting for you to ask me that!"

"I was in love with you all along, Gemstone," said Thundercracker, standing up and embracing her. "I just hadn't realized it."

"Actually, TC, I have something to confess," said Gemstone. "I realized I was falling in love with you a long time ago, but I didn't do anything about it because I thought you loved Moonbeam."

"At first, I did," Thundercracker replied. "But then I saw who she really was."

"And who was that, exactly?" Moonbeam demanded, still down on the floor, looking furious.

"Skywarp gave you everything he had and more, and all he asked for in return was a little love, Moonbeam," Thundercracker snapped. "You couldn't even give him that. Instead, you played with his spark, leaving him desperate and hurt, and then you tore him to pieces with your cheating. If you ask me, you deserve what you've gotten."

"She sure does." Gemstone nodded confidently.

"I love you, hon," said Thundercracker, hugging Gemstone tight. "I'm happy you're my girlfriend—for REAL, this time."

"I'm happy too," Gemstone whispered.

"Well, it's something to be happy about," said Starscream.

"There are lots of things to be happy about." Megatron looked at Starscream, grinned wickedly, and scooped him up into his arms—bridal style. "Aren't there, my little pleasure drone?"

"Oh, yes," Starscream laughed, putting his arms around Megatron's neck and twitching his wings a little. "Lots and _lots _of things."

"Well, we're off to the med bay," said Megatron, carrying the still-laughing Starscream out of the room. "Don't wait up for us."

"I bet I can guess what _they_'_re _going to do," said Thundercracker, rolling his eyes.

"What? Fight for supreme power again?" Gemstone giggled. "We'd better not disturb them."

"Well, now that Moonbeam is leaving, the guest room has vacancy again," said Thundercracker, nudging Gemstone suggestively. "Do _you _want to fight for power, too?"

"Of course!" Gemstone giggled again and they left for the bedroom, leaving Moonbeam all alone.


	29. True Friends

**APPROXIMATELY THREE WEEKS LATER…**

Starscream and Skywarp were sitting on Starscream's bed, taking care of the little twins. Starscream was feeding Stars his bottle, while Skywarp was stroking Megs's helmet, humming softly, trying to lull him into sleep. Megs smiled softly and cuddled up to Skywarp.

"I swear, Skywarp, these twins love you more than they love their own father," said Starscream, putting the empty bottle aside and sticking a pacifier in Stars's mouth.

Skywarp gave a sad smile, but his spark wasn't in it. Moonbeam had been gone for weeks, but he was still torn into pieces. No one dared speak her name, but it was in the air, hovering over them like some nasty cloud of smog. All that time, energy, and money Skywarp had spent on her—wasted.

In fact, not many of the Decepticons at base dared talk to Skywarp. It wasn't as if he was going to snap at them or anything; he wasn't really the type to do that. It was just that he was so fragile right now, and nobody wanted to rub salt in his wounds.

_Oh_, _no_, _not again_, Starscream was thinking as Skywarp held the sparkling close—yet again, he was trying to hold back tears that were leaking out of his eyes. It seemed like every little thing reminded him of Moonbeam, like a scab that wouldn't heal. Holding Stars in one arm, Starscream hugged Skywarp with his other arm, trying fruitlessly to comfort him.

"I'm all right." Skywarp sniffed and wiped his eyes with the back of his hand.

"No, you're not," said Starscream. "But if you don't want to talk about it, then, well, fine. We don't have to."

"What's there to talk about?" Skywarp asked with a quivering voice, then started to cry again.

"Skywarp, please," said Starscream desperately. "I know this seems like the end of the world right now, but really…it's not. You're better off without her. Really. It's her loss. When Moonbeam sees how happy you are after you two broke up, she will feel like a loser."

"You just got that off _Seeker Daily Drama_, didn't you?" Skywarp sobbed.

"Maybe," Starscream mumbled, recalling post-breakup scenes from _Seeker Daily Drama_, the sappiest program on Seeker TV. Things like this were common in such soap operas, only comparably worse. "But I mean it. You _don_'_t _need that bitch in your life. She really blew it."

"I don't care. I want her back anyway." Skywarp leaned into Starscream, unable to stop crying. Starscream let him, stroking his back and wings in a comforting way. The sparklings made little cooing noises as Skywarp and Starscream kept cuddling them.

"Listen, 'Warp, you're my brother and I love you," Starscream told him quietly, realizing that he actually wasn't quoting something he'd seen on TV this time. "Just remember, you don't have to go through this alone. You have me, the little twins, and Thundercracker…wherever the slag he is, anyway."

As if on cue, Thundercracker and Gemstone entered the room. Gemstone was holding several cubes of energon, which she placed next to Skywarp.

"TC and I thought these might cheer you up a little," she explained. "They're used for extra comfort fuel."

"Good for after a breakup," Thundercracker agreed.

Skywarp opened up one of the energon cubes and started drinking from it. Thundercracker had one too.

"Don't you have something to tell them, hon?" Thundercracker took a long swig from his energon cube and let out a loud burp.

"Oh, that's right," said Gemstone. "That's what we came in here to tell you."

"What?" said Starscream.

"Well, can you tell me how many sparklings are in the room right now?" Thundercracker asked.

"Um…two," Starscream told her. "Duh."

"You might want to check again." Gemstone closed her eyes, a smile brightened her face, and she held out a paper receipt. Starscream reached out and snatched it out of her hand.

"Test Recipient Designation: Gemstone," he read, his eyes getting bigger with every word. "Sparkling Test: Positive. Offspring Species: Hybrid. Offspring Subspecies: Seeker, Decepticon, Autobot. Sire Designation: Thundercracker. Expected Arrival: Twelve Months."

Starscream put his hand over his mouth and gasped as the realization sunk in.

"I'm sparked, bitches!" Gemstone cried happily.

Everyone started screaming at the same time; Gemstone and Skywarp both burst into tears, and so did the sparklings—well, two of them, anyway.

"I can't believe I'm going to be an uncle." Skywarp was sobbing, but this time with happiness. "Again!"

"Actually, there's more we want to announce," said Thundercracker, pulling away. "You see, we kind of had this sparkling by accident, and we're not exactly ready to be parents."

"So we decided to put it in the hands of someone a lot more responsible," Gemstone added. "You know, someone who's great with sparklings and wants one more than anything. Does anyone know somebody like that?"

Gemstone smiled again, leaving no doubt as to who she was referring to.

"Pick me! I'll do it!" Skywarp cried, glomping Thundercracker and Gemstone.

"Do you want to be a father, Skywarp?" Thundercracker asked gently, setting one hand on his brother's shoulder.

"I would love nothing more," said Skywarp, but then he looked a little nervous. "Are you sure you two want to give your new sparkling away, though?"

"We're not giving it away," Gemstone explained. "We'll still be there for it and help take care of it. We just thought we'd be better off as Aunt Gemstone and Uncle Thundercracker than Mommy and Daddy."

"And _you_, Skywarp, would be much better off as Daddy," Thundercracker added.

"I'll be Daddy," Skywarp whispered, and rubbed Gemstone's spark chamber, where the sparkling already lived. "I'll be the best Daddy in history."

"Of course you will," said Gemstone. "Those twins just _love _you."

"I finally have my own sparkling!" Skywarp sobbed. "And I've got the truest friends a Seeker could ever hope to find."

Starscream picked up Megs; Stars (in robot mode) landed on his shoulder; and he went to join the group hug.

-the end-

**P.S. STAY TUNED FOR THE EPILOGUE…COMING SOON!**


	30. Epilogue

**EPILOGUE**

**ONE YEAR LATER…**

Stars and Megs celebrated their first Creation Day. There was much celebration, and by this time they both could fly and were learning to walk. They said their first words.

Not long after, Gemstone gave birth to a daughter, Stardust. Skywarp adopted her and swore to protect her with his life. Stardust inherited several Seeker-like qualities from Thundercracker and was able to fly within weeks of her birth. She loved playing with her cousins, once they all got older.

Thundercracker and Gemstone stayed together. Megatron and Starscream stayed together too, partly for the twins, and partly for themselves. They were still a little unfamiliar with being "in love", but, as Thundercracker said, they made it work.

Moonbeam was never heard from again.

**-the end-**


End file.
